Wednesday, August 06, 2008

The Olympic Tennis Quiz

>>>THE QUESTIONS<<<

1. Who did Steffi Graf defeat in the '88 Seoul final to collect the Olympic title in her season's "Golden Slam?"

a. Gabriela Sabatini
b. Martina Navratilova
c. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario
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2. Only one woman and one man have swept both the singles & doubles Golds at the Olympics since Vincent Richards and Helen Wills-Moody did it in 1924. Who were they?

a. Stefan Edberg & Jana Novotna
b. Stefan Edberg & Steffi Graf
c. Venus Williams & Nicolas Massu
d. Venus Williams & Andre Agassi
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3. Approximately how many months was Justine Henin out of action before she arrived in Athens and won the singles Gold?

a. one
b. three
c. five
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4. Which two teenagers won the Los Angeles '84 tournament when tennis was a demonstration event before its re-introduction as a medal sport in '88?

a. Steffi Graf & Boris Becker
b. Steffi Graf & Stefan Edberg
c. Gabriela Sabatini & Boris Becker
d. Hana Mandlikova & Pat Cash
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5. Which Swiss man has won more Olympic medals in his career?

a. Roger Federer
b. Marc Rosset
c. Stanislas Wawrinka
d. no Swiss man has ever won a tennis medal
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6. Pick the woman who has won the most Olympic medals in her career:

a. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario
b. Venus Williams
c. Conchita Martinez
d. Mary Joe Fernandez
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7. How old was Jennifer Capriati when she won her Olympic singles Gold?

a. 16
b. 17
c. 18
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8. Only three women have played in a singles medal match (Gold or Bronze) in her home country at the Olympics since the sport's return in 1988. Pick the three:

a. Conchita Martinez (Barcelona '92)
b. Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario (Barcelona '92)
c. Lindsay Davenport (Atlanta '96)
d. Mary Joe Fernandez (Atlanta '96)
e. Jelena Dokic (Sydney '00)
f. Alicia Molik (Sydney '00)
g. Eleni Daniilidou (Athens '04)
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9. What distinction do Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi share?

a. they're the only players who've won two Olympic singles Golds
b. they're the only Olympic Gold winners who've also won ten or more slam titles
c. they're the only two players in history to win Olympic Gold, all four slams and their tour's year-ending championship
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10. Pick the three current American TV tennis commentators who have won Olympic medals:

Katrina Adams
Brad Gilbert
Mary Joe Fernandez
John McEnroe
Patrick McEnroe
Corina Morariu
Martina Navratilova
Pam Shriver

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>>>THE ANSWERS (3 pts each unless noted)<<<

1. a - Sabatini
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2. c - Venus Williams ('00) and Nicolas Massu ('04) swept the singles and doubles Golds
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3. b - Henin was out about three months prior to Athens with what was later diagnosed as the cytomegalovirus, not playing after an early loss at Roland Garros in late May until the Games began in mid-August. After winning the Gold, she played four matches at the U.S. Open and then missed the rest of the season.
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4. b - Steffi Graf (15) and Stefan Edberg (18) won the demonstration event in L.A.
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5. b - Marc Rosset won the singles Gold in '92. Federer lost the Bronze Medal match in '00, and fell in the 2nd Round in '04, and is still seeking his first Olympic medal.
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6. a - Sanchez Vicario won four Olympic medals (two Silver, two Bronze) since the return of the sport in 1988. Conchita Martinez, Jana Novotna and Mary Joe Fernandez won three.
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7. a - Capriati was 16 in Barcelona '92 when she defeated Graf in the singles final. It would be her eight and a half years before she'd win her first slam title at the Australian Open in 2001.
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8. (3 pts. for each correct answer; total: 9 pts.) c, d, e - Davenport won singles Gold in Atlanta, while Fernandez lost the Bronze match in the same Games. Dokic lost in the Bronze match, as well, in Sydney.
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9. c - married Graf & Agassi are the only players who've won all four slams, Olympic Gold and the YEC. Henin retired needing to only win Wimbledon (she was twice RU) to become the third male or female player to accomplish the feat.
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10. (3 pts. for each correct answer; total: 9 pts.) - Gilbert ('88 singles Bronze), Shriver ('88 doubles Gold) and Fernandez ('92 & '96 doubles Gold, '92 singles Bronze) have all won Olympic medals.
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>>>THE SCORING<<<

33-42 - If you can find a willing partner, you're ready to take on the Williams sisters in a "friendly" doubles match
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21-30 -
Like Sanchez Vicario, your numbers are good, but you never grabbed the Gold
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9-18 -
Like Roddick, you can just tell everyone you skipped the Games
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0-6 -
On the bright side, you've still won as many Olympic medals as Federer
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All for now.