With A Spirit Born To Run Trivia Quiz

Answer: Roger Bannister

Although he had established a new British record in the 1500 m final in 1952, he finished in fourth place, therefore not earning a medal. He briefly considered quitting running altogether, but soon resolved to make up for it by setting to be the first person to run a mile in under 4 minutes, which he eventually accomplished, on May 6th, 1954.

Answer: Jesse Owens

Considering that those games were held during the Nazi regime in Germany, and Hitler had hopes that German athletes would dominate the events, such a victory by Owens, an African American athlete, is still seen as legendary. A year before, at the Big Ten Track and Field Championship, Jesse also wrote a big page in history, as he broke three world records and equalled another, all in the space of 45 minutes.

Answer: Waldemar Cierpinski

Cierpinsky won two gold medals representing East Germany. Bikila (ETH) and Kipchoge (KEN) achieved that same feat as well. Wolde (ETH) won gold in 1968 and bronze in 1972.

Answer: Emil Zatopek

Often considered among the best long distance runners of all time, Zatopek frequently underwent heavy training routines to improve his skills, such as running under extreme weather or wearing work boots. Zatopek also became the first person to win the 5,000 m, 10,000 m, and the marathon, at the same Olympic Games.

Answer: Wilma Rudolph

A great example of what willpower can achieve. Wilma suffered many illnesses in her childhood, aside from polio. Through a long and difficult treatment, she overcame her ailings and became a star athlete in the '60s. She also played basketball in her teen years, also with quite some success. The three wrong options were her teammates in the "golden relay" at the 1960 Olympics.

Answer: Paula Radcliffe

Paula started racing when she was 12 years old. Her career spanned around 30 years, with her final race being the 2015 edition of the London Marathon.
Although she took part in four Olympic games, she never managed to win any medals.

Answer: Paavo Nurmi

Inspired by another great Finnish runner, Hannes Kohlemainem, Nurmi began training hard at the age of 15, and debuted at the 1920 Olympics. During his career, he broke 22 world records, and had a streak of 121 consecutive races from 800m upwards without being beaten.

He also set the record for most Olympic medals won by a single athlete (12 in total), and also for most gold medals (9) all of which were won in three different editions.

Answer: Usain Bolt

Even if you're not an avid athletics follower, you surely must have heard about Bolt. Widely considered the greatest sprinter of all time, he has won Olympic gold medals in the 100m and 200m in three consecutive editions. In 2009, he set a record for 100m in 9.58 seconds, and for 200m in 19.19 sec.

Answer: Los Angeles

Nicknamed "El Ņandu Criollo", Zabala became the first Olympic Marathon winner from North or South America, other than the USA. In 1948, fellow Argentinian Delfo Cabrera took home a second Marathon gold medal for the country. The start and finish of the marathon was at the LA Memorial Coliseum.

Answer: Boston

Back in those days, women weren't allowed to compete in the race, although there wasn't actually a rule saying so. In 1966, Bobbi Gibb tried to enter the marathon but was rejected, and she ran it unofficially by jumping into the crowd as it began. Inspired by this, Switzer decided to enter as an official competitor. Registering with her initials, and "disguising" herself with a hood at the starting line, she was able to participate.

But a few miles into the competition, John "Jock" Semple, one of the race officials, after noticing her, jumped off the press vehicle and tried to stop Switzer, until he was knocked down by her boyfriend, who was running with her. Switzer managed to finish the Marathon and was the first woman in doing so officially. The AAU, following this event, formally barred women from entering the competition, but in 1972, an official competition for women was established.