Sports: Not Much My Thing Online Trivia | Wide World of Sports

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In 2008, the oldest bowling alley in the United States celebrated its 100th birthday. The claim of being the oldest was verified by the U.S. Bowling Congress. Can you name the establishment?

Answer: Holler House

This is actually a nickname the tavern earned from the loud atmosphere that is found there. If you're ever in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, be sure to stop by.

2. Imagine you are a fan of Australian Rules Football club, Western Wombats. You hear that in a recent game your full-forward, "Wocka" Jones, kicked six behinds. What is most likely your reaction?

Answer: Disappointment. Should have done more.

The scoring zone is four vertical posts in a row on the boundary. The two centre (goal) posts are taller. The outer posts are called the behind posts. If the ball goes between the taller posts, it's a goal, and scores six points. A kick between a tall and a short post is called a "behind" and earns one point. So from six scoring shots, Wocka could have accrued 36 points, but managed only six.

3. The 2010 Winter Olympic Games were held in Vancouver, Canada. South Korea's Kim Yu-Na set a world record and won the country's first medal in a particular sport. For which event did Kim Yu-Na win the gold medal?

Answer: Figure Skating

She was the graceful star of Women's Singles figure skating, winning over Japan's Mao Asada by a large point-margin. Yu-Na is hugely popular in South Korea, probably the best-known athlete her country had ever produced.

4. The origin of the term "Chinaman" in cricket dates back to a Test in England in 1933, when English batsman Walter Robinson bemused by a turning delivery and getting out stumped, told the incoming batsman on his way, "Fancy being out to a bloody Chinaman!" A Chinese man and playing Test cricket and that too for the West Indies. Who that would be?

Answer: Ellis Achong

A "Chinaman" in cricket is a ball bowled by left-arm unorthodox spinners that turns the "wrong" way. That is, the ball turns from the off to the leg-side of the stumps because of the use of wrists, much like a regular right-handed off-spinner. Ellis "Puss" Achong, the first Chinese man ever to play Test cricket was a left-arm unorthodox spinner who played six Tests for the West Indies in the 1930s.

He did not have a spectacular career but will remain known in the history of the game because of the term "Chinaman".

5. Some might know that the modern version of ice hockey was born in Canada. Where was the first professional team formed in the United States?

Answer: Houghton, Michigan

4000-year old Egyptian drawings depict a sport resembling field hockey from which it has been said ice hockey was derived. Naturally, those in colder climates adapted it to the ice. The Portage Lakers that formed in 1903, became part of the U.S. Amateur Hockey League that had been founded in New York City in 1896.

6. While the dragon boat races moght be better known, the Indian snake boat races are equally fascinating. In which South Indian state is the Nehru Trophy Boat Race annually held on the second Saturday of August?

Answer: Kerala

Snake boat races are commonly held during Onam, the harvest festival of Kerala. The snake boats known as Chundans are over 100 feet in length and each team consists of more than a hundred oarsmen. The races are accompanied by loud drum music and singing. When the first Prime Minister of India, Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru, visited Alappuzha in 1952, the pageantry of boats accompanying him broke into an impromptu race. Nehru was so fascinated that on his return to Delhi, he donated a rolling silver trophy to the winners.

The trophy consists of a replica of the snake boat on a wooden abacus. The race has been held every year since then in his honour and is known as the Nehru Trophy Boat Race.

7. This very traditional Indian sport traces its origins to the 12th century, and involves performing gymnastic feats and poses while hanging from a vertical wooden pole or rope. The sport stagnated for many years before being revived in the late 19th century, and today's tournaments are being organised at the national level. Which of the following best names this sport?

Answer: Mallakhamb

Mallakhamb literally means 'wrestler on a pole' ('Malla' means wrestler and 'khamba' means pole). The exercises/sport can be performed on a fixed pole, a rope, or a hanging wooden pole. The sport is more popular in the states of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh in India, and efforts are on to popularise this sport through reality shows on TV.

8. This is the traditional Indian game of Chasers vs Defenders. Nine per side, the defenders enter the arena in batches of three. Passive chasers kneel down in alternating opposite directions to hunt down the defenders. The active chaser can change positions with a passive chaser by patting on his back and uttering a word loudly. Which game is it?

Answer: Kho Kho

There are two innings in a match of Kho Kho, each inning comprising of chasing and defending turns. Each turn lasts for seven minutes. A defender (runner) is dismissed if he is touched by an active chaser, or if he crosses over the limit of the arena or if he enters the arena later than the stipulated time. The origin of Kho Kho can be traced to the early 1900s in the state of Maharashtra, India.

The rules for the game were formalised in 1914 at the Poona Gymkhana. Kho Kho Federation of India (KKFI) is the governing body for this game and conducts National Championships for it.

Shekhar Dharwadkar and Usha Nagarkar, among others, have won the Arjuna Award, the highest honour for sportspersons in India for their contribution to Kho Kho.

9. Invented in the 1920s as a lunchtime diversion by workers at Newport Railway Workshops in Australia, this game was originally played inside a railway carriage. Eventually, rules were formalised, suburban clubs were formed, and it is now played on a green similar to lawn bowls. What is this obscure sport?

Answer: Trugo

The player stood at one end of a railway carriage with his back to the far door. Standing astride a heavy rubber disc (washer), he would strike the washer with a railway mallet. The washer rolled down the aisle between the seats and hopefully through the door. This was a "True Go", a goal. For safety, the washer would then be caught in a canvas bag on a stick.
Modern-day Trugo retains the original equipment (mallet, rubber washer, and canvas bag). The goal is the same width as a train doorway and the green is the length of the original railway carriage. It was later played on grass in the open air. The competition is administered by the Victorian Trugo Association.
Modified rules have been introduced for female players. Their game is called "Go-Tru". The sport was featured in 2009 on American TV show, "Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations".

10. During the 2010 Winter Olympics there was one curling team that had a perfect record. Which team was this?

Answer: Canadian men's

The Canadian men's team skipped by the legendary Kevin Martin was the first team ever to go undefeated in Olympic curling. They beat the Norwegian Men's team for the gold, and the Swedish Women's team beat the Canadian women's team for the gold.

Source: Author limabone

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Nightmare before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Sports: Not Much My Thing Trivia Quiz

Sports may be a time honored tradition but not all of us are on our game. Hopefully we all find our inner athlete and learn something new!

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