Olympic Gold Medalists Quiz
Twenty champions, twenty golden moments. Can you name every Olympic legend?
Which sprinter won three consecutive Olympic golds in both the 100m and 200m (2008, 2012, 2016)?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Usain Bolt
Usain Bolt won the 100m and 200m at Beijing, London and Rio, the only sprinter ever to take both titles at three straight Games.
Bolt's 100m world record of 9.58 seconds, set in Berlin in 2009, still stands nearly two decades later.
Which swimmer holds the record for the most Olympic gold medals in history?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Michael Phelps
Michael Phelps won 23 Olympic golds between 2004 and 2016, including a record eight at a single Games in Beijing in 2008.
Phelps has 28 Olympic medals in total, more than most countries have won across the entire history of the Games.
Which gymnast became the first to score a perfect 10 at the Olympic Games in 1976?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Nadia Comăneci
Nadia Comaneci scored the first perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics on the uneven bars in Montreal in 1976, aged just 14.
The Montreal scoreboard could only show three digits, so her historic 10.00 famously appeared as 1.00.
Which American track star won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Jesse Owens
Jesse Owens took gold in the 100m, 200m, long jump and 4x100m relay in Berlin, undermining Nazi claims of racial superiority in front of Hitler.
German long jumper Luz Long befriended Owens during the Berlin competition, and the two stayed in touch by letter until Long died in 1943.
Which tennis player won singles gold at the 2012 London Olympics while representing Great Britain?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Andy Murray
Andy Murray beat Roger Federer in straight sets on Wimbledon's Centre Court, just four weeks after losing the Wimbledon final to him on the same court.
Murray defended the title in Rio in 2016, becoming the first tennis player to win two Olympic singles golds.
Which legendary American sprinter won nine Olympic gold medals across four Games (1984 to 1996)?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Carl Lewis
Carl Lewis won nine golds across Los Angeles, Seoul, Barcelona and Atlanta, including four consecutive long jump titles.
Lewis was awarded the 100m gold from Seoul 1988 after Ben Johnson was disqualified for a positive drug test.
Which Kenyan won the men's marathon at Rio 2016 and then successfully defended the title at the Tokyo Games?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Eliud Kipchoge
Eliud Kipchoge won in Rio in 2:08:44 and again in Sapporo at the delayed Tokyo Games, becoming only the third man to retain the Olympic marathon title.
In Vienna in 2019 Kipchoge ran 1:59:40 in a paced exhibition, the first marathon covered in under two hours, though it does not count as a record.
Which U.S. swimmer is known for dominating distance freestyle events and winning multiple golds in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Katie Ledecky
Katie Ledecky won four golds in Rio and two more in Tokyo, dominating the 800m freestyle and the new women's 1500m freestyle.
Ledecky added two golds in Paris in 2024, taking her Olympic gold count to nine, the most by any female swimmer.
Which Jamaican sprinter completed the women's 'double-double' by winning 100m and 200m gold at both Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Elaine Thompson-Herah
Elaine Thompson-Herah won both sprints in Rio and repeated the feat in Tokyo, the first woman to defend both Olympic sprint titles.
Her 10.61 in the Tokyo 100m final broke Florence Griffith-Joyner's 33-year-old Olympic record.
Which basketball icon led the USA 'Dream Team' to gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan headlined the first U.S. Olympic team built from NBA stars, which won its eight games by an average of almost 44 points.
Jordan had already won Olympic gold in 1984 as a college player, before the NBA allowed its professionals to compete.
Which American gymnast, widely regarded as the greatest of all time, has won Olympic golds at Rio 2016 and beyond?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Simone Biles
Simone Biles has seven Olympic golds: four in Rio in 2016 and three in Paris in 2024, including two all-around titles eight years apart.
Biles withdrew from most of her Tokyo finals with the 'twisties', a dangerous loss of air awareness, then came back stronger in Paris.
Which Ethiopian runner won back-to-back Olympic golds in the 10,000m in 1996 and 2000?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie beat Kenya's Paul Tergat to 10,000m gold in Atlanta and again in Sydney, the second time by just nine hundredths of a second.
He later moved up to the marathon and set a world record of 2:03:59 in Berlin in 2008.
Which Brazilian soccer coach led the Brazil men's team to Olympic gold at Rio 2016?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Rogério Micale
Rogerio Micale, a youth coach with little senior experience, guided Brazil past Germany on penalties in the final at the Maracana.
That win gave Brazil its first Olympic men's football gold, and Neymar converted the decisive penalty in the shootout.
Which U.S. track star became the most decorated female track and field Olympian with 11 medals, including multiple golds?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Allyson Felix
Allyson Felix won 11 Olympic medals across five Games from 2004 to 2020, including seven golds, more than any other woman in track and field.
She won her final medal, a 4x400m relay gold in Tokyo, at 35, two years after a difficult pregnancy and a public dispute with Nike over maternity pay.
Which British distance runner won Olympic gold in both the 5,000m and 10,000m at London 2012?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Mo Farah
Mo Farah won the 10,000m and then the 5,000m in London within a week, and repeated the same double in Rio four years later.
His 'Mobot' celebration was invented on the TV panel show A League of Their Own shortly before London 2012.
Which Soviet gymnast won the men's all-around gold at both the 1952 Helsinki and 1956 Melbourne Games?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Viktor Chukarin
Viktor Chukarin won the all-around at both Games and 11 Olympic medals in total, having survived four years in Nazi prison camps during the war.
The Soviet Union made its Olympic debut in 1952, and Chukarin's golds helped it top the gymnastics medal table straight away.
Which legendary Jamaican sprinter won Olympic gold in the women's 100m at Beijing 2008 and London 2012?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won the 100m in Beijing at 21 and retained it in London, the first woman to defend the Olympic 100m title since Gail Devers.
Nicknamed the 'Pocket Rocket' for her five foot frame, she added Olympic 100m bronze in Rio and silver in Tokyo.
Which American decathlete famously earned the title 'World's Greatest Athlete' after winning gold at the 1976 Olympics?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Bruce Jenner (Caitlyn Jenner)
Bruce Jenner set a world record of 8,618 points in the Montreal decathlon, and the Olympic decathlon champion is traditionally called the world's greatest athlete.
Jenner's face appeared on Wheaties boxes and the win led to acting work, decades before coming out as Caitlyn in 2015.
Which table tennis star won multiple Olympic golds for China and is considered one of the sport's all-time greats?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Ma Long
Ma Long won singles gold in Rio and Tokyo plus team golds in 2016, 2020 and 2024, six in all, the most by any table tennis player.
He is the first man to win two Olympic table tennis singles titles and holds more Olympic golds than any other Chinese athlete.
Which U.S. player scored the winning goal in both the 2008 and 2012 Olympic women's soccer finals?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Carli Lloyd
Carli Lloyd scored the extra-time winner against Brazil in Beijing and both goals in the two goals to one win over Japan at Wembley in 2012.
Lloyd later scored a hat-trick in the 2015 World Cup final, including a lob from the halfway line.
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All Sports quizzes →About the Olympic Gold Medalists Quiz
Usain Bolt won the 100m and 200m at three straight Games. Michael Phelps collected 23 golds, more than most nations have managed in a century of trying. Nadia Comaneci scored a perfect 10 at 14, on a scoreboard that could not even display it. Olympic gold medalists are the athletes who delivered when the whole world was watching, and their stories are some of the best in sport.
These 20 questions run from sprinting, swimming and gymnastics to marathon running, table tennis, football and the 1992 Dream Team. A few are gentle warm-ups. Others ask about Soviet gymnasts, Kenyan marathoners and Chinese paddlers who deserve to be far better known. It suits anyone who watches the Games every four years and wants to find out how much really stuck.
You will find 20 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Medium. Most people finish in about 7 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 20 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
How hard is the Olympic Gold Medalists Quiz?
It is a medium quiz. Around half the questions cover household names such as Bolt, Phelps and Simone Biles, while the rest dig into gymnastics, marathon and table tennis history that will stretch serious Olympic fans.
Which Olympic sports does the quiz cover?
Athletics, swimming, gymnastics, tennis, basketball, football, table tennis and the decathlon all feature, with questions spanning the 1936 Berlin Games right through to Paris 2024.
Can I use these questions for a pub quiz or classroom?
Yes. Each question comes with a short explanation and a bonus fact, so you can read them out as a ready-made sports round or use them to teach Olympic history.
Answer key: all 20 questions with explanations
- Which sprinter won three consecutive Olympic golds in both the 100m and 200m (2008, 2012, 2016)?
Usain Bolt Usain Bolt won the 100m and 200m at Beijing, London and Rio, the only sprinter ever to take both titles at three straight Games. Bolt's 100m world record of 9.58 seconds, set in Berlin in 2009, still stands nearly two decades later. - Which swimmer holds the record for the most Olympic gold medals in history?
Michael Phelps Michael Phelps won 23 Olympic golds between 2004 and 2016, including a record eight at a single Games in Beijing in 2008. Phelps has 28 Olympic medals in total, more than most countries have won across the entire history of the Games. - Which gymnast became the first to score a perfect 10 at the Olympic Games in 1976?
Nadia Comăneci Nadia Comaneci scored the first perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics on the uneven bars in Montreal in 1976, aged just 14. The Montreal scoreboard could only show three digits, so her historic 10.00 famously appeared as 1.00. - Which American track star won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics?
Jesse Owens Jesse Owens took gold in the 100m, 200m, long jump and 4x100m relay in Berlin, undermining Nazi claims of racial superiority in front of Hitler. German long jumper Luz Long befriended Owens during the Berlin competition, and the two stayed in touch by letter until Long died in 1943. - Which tennis player won singles gold at the 2012 London Olympics while representing Great Britain?
Andy Murray Andy Murray beat Roger Federer in straight sets on Wimbledon's Centre Court, just four weeks after losing the Wimbledon final to him on the same court. Murray defended the title in Rio in 2016, becoming the first tennis player to win two Olympic singles golds. - Which legendary American sprinter won nine Olympic gold medals across four Games (1984 to 1996)?
Carl Lewis Carl Lewis won nine golds across Los Angeles, Seoul, Barcelona and Atlanta, including four consecutive long jump titles. Lewis was awarded the 100m gold from Seoul 1988 after Ben Johnson was disqualified for a positive drug test. - Which Kenyan won the men's marathon at Rio 2016 and then successfully defended the title at the Tokyo Games?
Eliud Kipchoge Eliud Kipchoge won in Rio in 2:08:44 and again in Sapporo at the delayed Tokyo Games, becoming only the third man to retain the Olympic marathon title. In Vienna in 2019 Kipchoge ran 1:59:40 in a paced exhibition, the first marathon covered in under two hours, though it does not count as a record. - Which U.S. swimmer is known for dominating distance freestyle events and winning multiple golds in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020?
Katie Ledecky Katie Ledecky won four golds in Rio and two more in Tokyo, dominating the 800m freestyle and the new women's 1500m freestyle. Ledecky added two golds in Paris in 2024, taking her Olympic gold count to nine, the most by any female swimmer. - Which Jamaican sprinter completed the women's 'double-double' by winning 100m and 200m gold at both Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020?
Elaine Thompson-Herah Elaine Thompson-Herah won both sprints in Rio and repeated the feat in Tokyo, the first woman to defend both Olympic sprint titles. Her 10.61 in the Tokyo 100m final broke Florence Griffith-Joyner's 33-year-old Olympic record. - Which basketball icon led the USA 'Dream Team' to gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics?
Michael Jordan Michael Jordan headlined the first U.S. Olympic team built from NBA stars, which won its eight games by an average of almost 44 points. Jordan had already won Olympic gold in 1984 as a college player, before the NBA allowed its professionals to compete. - Which American gymnast, widely regarded as the greatest of all time, has won Olympic golds at Rio 2016 and beyond?
Simone Biles Simone Biles has seven Olympic golds: four in Rio in 2016 and three in Paris in 2024, including two all-around titles eight years apart. Biles withdrew from most of her Tokyo finals with the 'twisties', a dangerous loss of air awareness, then came back stronger in Paris. - Which Ethiopian runner won back-to-back Olympic golds in the 10,000m in 1996 and 2000?
Haile Gebrselassie Haile Gebrselassie beat Kenya's Paul Tergat to 10,000m gold in Atlanta and again in Sydney, the second time by just nine hundredths of a second. He later moved up to the marathon and set a world record of 2:03:59 in Berlin in 2008. - Which Brazilian soccer coach led the Brazil men's team to Olympic gold at Rio 2016?
Rogério Micale Rogerio Micale, a youth coach with little senior experience, guided Brazil past Germany on penalties in the final at the Maracana. That win gave Brazil its first Olympic men's football gold, and Neymar converted the decisive penalty in the shootout. - Which U.S. track star became the most decorated female track and field Olympian with 11 medals, including multiple golds?
Allyson Felix Allyson Felix won 11 Olympic medals across five Games from 2004 to 2020, including seven golds, more than any other woman in track and field. She won her final medal, a 4x400m relay gold in Tokyo, at 35, two years after a difficult pregnancy and a public dispute with Nike over maternity pay. - Which British distance runner won Olympic gold in both the 5,000m and 10,000m at London 2012?
Mo Farah Mo Farah won the 10,000m and then the 5,000m in London within a week, and repeated the same double in Rio four years later. His 'Mobot' celebration was invented on the TV panel show A League of Their Own shortly before London 2012. - Which Soviet gymnast won the men's all-around gold at both the 1952 Helsinki and 1956 Melbourne Games?
Viktor Chukarin Viktor Chukarin won the all-around at both Games and 11 Olympic medals in total, having survived four years in Nazi prison camps during the war. The Soviet Union made its Olympic debut in 1952, and Chukarin's golds helped it top the gymnastics medal table straight away. - Which legendary Jamaican sprinter won Olympic gold in the women's 100m at Beijing 2008 and London 2012?
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won the 100m in Beijing at 21 and retained it in London, the first woman to defend the Olympic 100m title since Gail Devers. Nicknamed the 'Pocket Rocket' for her five foot frame, she added Olympic 100m bronze in Rio and silver in Tokyo. - Which American decathlete famously earned the title 'World's Greatest Athlete' after winning gold at the 1976 Olympics?
Bruce Jenner (Caitlyn Jenner) Bruce Jenner set a world record of 8,618 points in the Montreal decathlon, and the Olympic decathlon champion is traditionally called the world's greatest athlete. Jenner's face appeared on Wheaties boxes and the win led to acting work, decades before coming out as Caitlyn in 2015. - Which table tennis star won multiple Olympic golds for China and is considered one of the sport's all-time greats?
Ma Long Ma Long won singles gold in Rio and Tokyo plus team golds in 2016, 2020 and 2024, six in all, the most by any table tennis player. He is the first man to win two Olympic table tennis singles titles and holds more Olympic golds than any other Chinese athlete. - Which U.S. player scored the winning goal in both the 2008 and 2012 Olympic women's soccer finals?
Carli Lloyd Carli Lloyd scored the extra-time winner against Brazil in Beijing and both goals in the two goals to one win over Japan at Wembley in 2012. Lloyd later scored a hat-trick in the 2015 World Cup final, including a lob from the halfway line.
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