Sports Questions and Answers

Answer: A

The answer is Saraswati Saha Dey.

Saraswati Saha (born Saraswati Dey), the sprinter from Agartala, is recorded as Tripura's first Olympian. She was one of India's leading sprinters of her time and won the women's 200 metres gold at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan.

Dipa Karmakar, also from Agartala, became famous much later, at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where she was the first Indian woman gymnast to compete and finished fourth in the vault. The tennis player Somdev Devvarman, whose family is from Tripura, rose to prominence only in the late 2000s. So neither of them can be the state's first Olympian.

Answer: A

AIBA banned Sarita Devi for one year.

At the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, L. Sarita Devi lost a disputed semi-final and, in protest, refused to accept her bronze medal on the podium. The International Boxing Association (AIBA) responded in December 2014 by suspending her for one year.

The suspension was for one year, so the longer terms of two, five and ten years are wrong. Refusing a medal on the podium breaches the rules on conduct at medal ceremonies, which is why the governing body acted against her even though her complaint was about the judging.

Answer: B

The first Indian Super League was won by Atletico de Kolkata.

The inaugural season of the Indian Super League was played in late 2014. Atletico de Kolkata beat Kerala Blasters 1-0 in the final in December 2014 to become the first champions.

Kerala Blasters were the losing finalists. Mumbai City FC and FC Pune City also took part in that first season but did not reach the final.

Answer: C

Dibyendu Barua is associated with chess.

Dibyendu Barua of Kolkata became India's second chess Grandmaster in 1991, after Viswanathan Anand. He won the national championship several times and was given the Arjuna Award.

He has no connection with tennis, cricket or badminton. Other Indian names linked with those sports, such as Leander Paes in tennis or Prakash Padukone in badminton, are the ones to associate with them.

Answer: B

The first Olympian from Tripura was the sprinter Saraswati Dey Saha.

Born at Chittamara in Tripura, she ran in India's 4 × 100 m relay team at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and in the 200 m at Athens 2004. She won the 200 m gold at the 2002 Asian Games and held the national 200 m record.

Dipa Karmakar, the gymnast, also from Tripura, competed at Rio 2016, much later. Bishweshwar Nandi is best known as Dipa's coach. Saraswati Saha's Sydney appearance came first.

Answer: A

National Sports Day marks the birthday of Major Dhyan Chand.

India celebrates National Sports Day on 29 August, the birth anniversary of hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand, who led India to Olympic gold medals in 1928, 1932 and 1936. The national sports awards are traditionally presented on this day.

P. T. Usha and Sachin Tendulkar are celebrated athletes, but the day is not tied to their birthdays.

Since 2021 India's highest sporting honour has also carried his name, as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award.

Answer: A

The key's answer is Kapil Dev.

In 2002 Kapil Dev was named India's Cricketer of the Century by Wisden, ahead of Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar. He led India to the 1983 World Cup and retired in 1994 as Test cricket's leading wicket-taker.

The question credits the ICC with the title, but the award most often cited is Wisden's; among the options, Kapil Dev is the only one to have received it. Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly were all still playing at the time.

Answer: B

The first Indian woman to reach an Olympic final in an individual track event was P. T. Usha.

At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics Usha reached the final of the 400 m hurdles and finished fourth, missing the bronze medal by one hundredth of a second.

At the same Games Shiny Abraham became the first Indian woman to reach an Olympic semi-final, in the 800 m, but not a final. Arati Saha was a swimmer, the first Asian woman to swim the English Channel (1959), and M. D. Valsamma won 400 m hurdles gold at the 1982 Asian Games, not an Olympic final.

Answer: A

The first Olympian from Tripura was Saraswati De Saha.

Saraswati Dey Saha, a sprinter from Tripura, whose international career peaked around the turn of the century, represented India in athletics at the Olympics. That made her the state's first Olympian, ahead of the better-known names among the options.

Somdev Devvarman, whose family is from Tripura, played tennis at the 2012 London Olympics, and Dipa Karmakar, from Agartala, became famous as India's first woman gymnast at the Olympics in Rio in 2016. Both came after her, which is the trap in this question.

Answer: D

Jujutsu is given here as the national game of Japan. It is the classical Japanese martial art of unarmed combat, from which both judo and aikido derive.

Sumo is Japan's traditional national sport by many accounts, and baseball is by far the most popular game played there; but jujutsu is the answer this question records.