Sports Trophies | 10 Question Sports Multiple Choice Quiz

Answer: Basketball

Larry O'Brien served as U.S. Postmaster General from 1965-1968 and commissioner of the NBA from 1975-1984. The trophy was first awarded in 1977. The NBA trophy was formerly named for Walter A. Brown, the original owner of the Boston Celtics.

Answer: Hockey

Lord Stanley was the Governor General of Canada and donated the trophy to be awarded to the top-ranked amateur hockey team in 1893. It was originally called the Dominion Hockey Challenge Cup and was first given to the Montreal HC.

In 1906 professionals were allowed to compete for the cup and thus it is considered to be the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to one of the "big four" professional sports in North America.

Answer: American College Football

The Heisman Trophy was created in 1935 by the New York Athletic Club to be awarded to the Most Outstanding Collegiate Football Player east of the Mississippi each year. It was named after the club's athletic director, John Heisman, after his death. In 1936, the award was changed to include players west of the Mississippi.

The first two-time winner was Archie Griffin of Ohio State University. Joe Theismann of Notre Dame, changed the pronunciation of his name to rhyme with Heisman, but he was unsuccessful in his effort to be chosen as the winner.

Answer: Aviation

Clifford B. Harmon, a well-to-do aviator and balloonist, created three trophies in 1926. These international trophies were to be awarded to the world's outstanding aviator, aviatrix and aeronaut (balloon or dirigible). The 24-inch aviator's trophy was placed in the Smithsonian, but the original aeronaut's trophy was lost in Germany during WWII.

In 1969 an additional trophy was created to honor astronauts.

Answer: Horse racing

The Vase (made of silver) was created by Tiffany for the Woodlawn Race Course Association. The Vase was first awarded in 1861 and then in 1866 after a hiatus due to the Civil War. The Vase was buried to protect it from being melted down by Confederates for bullets by the owner of the winning horse, Captain Thomas Moore. Beginning in 1917, the winner of the Preakness Stakes was given custody of the Vase for a year.

But after Native Dancer won the Preakness in 1953, the owner Alfred Vanderbilt's wife was concerned about the responsibility of safeguarding this historic prize and the Maryland Jockey Club became the caretaker of the trophy.

A replica of the Vase is given to the winner of the Preakness Stakes each year.

Answer: Bridge

This trophy was named after the creator of modern contract bridge, Harold Stanley Vanderbilt. It was awarded for the winner of the Vanderbilt Knockout Team National Championship. It was first awarded in 1928 and twice won by Vanderbilt himself (in 1932 and 1940). The event usually lasts for seven days.

Answer: Auto racing

William K. Vanderbilt, of the railroad tycoon family, created the Vanderbilt Cup in the hopes of stimulating the nascent American auto industry. From 1904-1910 the Vanderbilt International Road Races, held in Long Island New York, were considered one of the greatest sporting events of the day with crowds that swelled to 250,000.

The first race was run over 30 miles of winding dirt roads in Suffolk county. This prize should not be confused with the Vanderbilt trophy in bridge.

Answer: Golf

The FedEx Cup was started in 2007 to increase interest in pro golf and awarded to the winner of the newly instituted end of the year pro golf playoffs. The first prize in 2007 was won by Tiger Woods and was worth ten million US dollars paid into a tax-deferred retirement account.

Answer: Pro football

The winner of the National Football League's Super Bowl wins the Vince Lombardi Trophy. It was first awarded to the Green Bay Packers in January 1967 after their win over the American Football Conference's Kansas City Chiefs. It was officially named the Vince Lombardi Trophy after coach Lombardi's death from cancer in 1970.

Answer: Baseball

The only trophy among the four major pro sports in America not named for a unique individual is awarded to the winner of the World Series of pro baseball. This trophy was first awarded in 1967 and named in 1985, but not given in 1994 due to the baseball strike.

Another baseball trophy also called the Commissioner's Trophy (1970-1985) was given to the MVP of the All-Star Game but was changed due to the World Series winning trophy being renamed the Commissioner's Trophy. Either trophy would have baseball as the correct answer.