WatchTime - August 2012

WATCHquiz
For the Record
Go for a medal of your own with this Olympic
timing test.
1. Which of these was an actual name for
an Olympic innovation?
A. Omegascope
B. Seik-O-Vision
C. Glock-O-Clock
D. TAG-O-Matic
2. At the inaugural modern Olympics in
Athens in 1896, why did American James
Connolly arrive in Greece only 24 hours
before his event?
A. His ship got lost when the navigator
became confused.
B. His ship had to change course to avoid
a storm.
C. The Greek calendar differed from Connolly’s
American calendar by several days.
D. His ship encountered pirates and the
passengers were robbed of their
possessions.
3. Omega’s “photo-finish” camera used in
the Olympics shoots how many frames per
second?
A. 500
B. 1,000
C. 2,000
D. 10,000
4. The chronographs Omega supplied to
the 1932 Olympics were certified as
chronometers by the Observatory at
Neuchâtel and which other organization?
A. Royal Observatory, Greenwich
B. U.S. Naval Observatory
C. Geneva Observatory
D. U.S. National Physics Laboratory
5. Which Olympics were the first to use
electronic timers?
A. 1936 Berlin
B. 1948 London
C. 1952 Oslo
D. 1952 Helsinki
40 WatchTime August 2012
Omega’s photo-finish camera shoots
how many frames per second?
6. In Olympic track and field sprint races,
how are false starts detected?
A. Spotters watch each runner from
behind.
B. Pressure sensors in the starting blocks
C. Motion sensors mounted behind the
runners
D. Pressure sensors in the track where the
hands are placed
7. Olympic track and field sprinters
receive a false start if they react to the
starting gun faster than:
A. 1/5 of a second
B. 1/8 of a second
C. 1/10 of a second
D. 1/20 of a second
8. Which Olympics marked the first time a
single company was selected to time all
events?
A. 1928 Amsterdam
B. 1932 Los Angeles
C. 1948 London
D. 1952 Helsinki
9. The official name for the semi-automatic
timing system for swimming introduced
at the Melbourne games in 1956 was:
A. Swim Eight-O-Matic
B. Swim Touch-O-Matic
C. Swim Stroke-O-Rama
D. Swim Time-O-Tron
10. Which of these watch brands was an
official Olympic timer?
A. Heuer
B. Rolex
C. Citizen
D. Casio
11. Which Olympics saw the first use of
contact or touch pads to aid timing in
swimming?
A. 1964 Tokyo
B. 1968 Mexico City
C. 1972 Munich
D. 1976 Montreal
12. What was unusual about the 1980
men’s 100 meters final?
A. The gold and silver medalists both
had the same time.
B. The winner was unaccustomed to
using starting blocks as required by
Olympic rules.
C. The time difference between the first
and last place finishers was only 0.24
seconds.
D. All of the above
13. Which of these is a timing innovation
introduced by Omega at the 2010
Olympics?
A. An electronic starting gun that
emits light
B. A stopwatch that automatically
accounts for the user’s delayed reaction
times
C. Police-style laser guns to determine
speed-skaters’ speed
D. Tiny computer chips in skiers’ helmets
measured their speed
14. Which of these Olympic finishes was
NOT decided by 0.01 of a second?
A. Gail Devers edges out Juliet Cuthbert in
the 1992 women’s 100 meters
B. Michael Phelps edges out Milorad Cavic
in the 2008 men's 100-meter butterfly
C. Hasely Crawford edges out Don Quarrie
in the 1976 men’s 100 meters
D. Carl Lewis edges out Linford Christie
in the 1984 men’s 100 meters
15. Who had the first sub-10-second goldmedal-winning
100-meters performance?
A. Bob Hayes in Tokyo in 1964
B. Carl Lewis in Los Angeles in 1984
C. Valeriy Borzov in Munich in 1972
D. James Hines in Mexico City in 1968
Answers: 1A; 2C; 3C; 4D; 5D; 6B; 7C;
8B; 9A; 10A; 11B; 12D; 13A; 14D; 15D