Greatest Olympic Prize: Questions and Answers

Greatest Olympic Prize: Questions and Answers

Part A: Essay Type Questions:-

Answer the following questions with reference to the story 'My Greatest Olympic Prize'.

Q1. Do you feel the title of the article is appropriate? Why/why not? 

Yes, I feel the title of the article is appropriate. It captures perfectly the

feeling of friendship that Jesse Owens felt for German athlete and competitor, Luz Long.

The article is set against the backdrop of the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin. In 1936, Nazi ideology had already gained ground in Germany. Owens, an African American athlete, had heard about Hitler's theory of Aryan superiority - the belief that Aryan races are superior to other races. Though he was not too bothered by it initially, he found himself affected by it after seeing Long performing exceptionally well at the broad jump trials. He decided to prove Hitler's theory wrong at the trials and attempted his qualifying jumps in anger. As a result, he lost focus and ended up fouling twice. At that point, Long came forward, assured Owens that he didn't believe in Aryan supremacy and gave Owens a valuable tip that helped Owens qualify for the finals. That night, the two athletes chatted for two hours and forged a friendship. On the day of the finals, Long broke his own record, pushing Owens to do even better. Owens won the gold for broad jump and even set an Olympic record. Long was the first person to rush to his side and congratulate him. Owens describes the moment as priceless and as pure as 24-karat gold.

Thus, Owens won something far more valuable than fame and a gold medal at the Olympics. He won his greatest Olympic prize - a true friend for life.

Q 2.  Who was Pierre de Coubertin? How does his statement on sportsmanship

apply to the article 'My Greatest Olympic Prize'? 

Pierre de Coubertin was the founder of the modern Olympic Games. His statement. The important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part. The essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well' was especially true in the case of the German athlete Luz Long.

The above statement clearly applies to the German as he showed no malice towards the narrator, an African American competitor. He did not allow the political climate of the time to affect him. Also, instead of sabotaging his opponent, he guided Owens to do his best. He did not however go easy on Owens. Long had every intention of winning the gold, but he did not want to do so by bringing his opponent down. Instead, he pushed the narrator to perform his best while he himself ended up beating all of his previous records. Even when Owens finally won, he showed no jealousy and rushed to congratulate him. Thus, Long truly competed fairly.

Part B: Reference to Context:-

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

Because Adolf Hitler childishly insisted that his performers were members of a "master race," nationalistic feelings were at an all-time high.

I wasn't too worried about all this. I'd trained, sweated and disciplined myself for six years, with the Games in mind.

i. Who is the narrator? Which 'Games' is he referring to in this passage? 

The narrator is Jesse Owens, an athlete from the USA.

He is referring to the Olympic Games held in Berlin in 1936.

ii. What was the narrator hoping to achieve at the Games? What record had he set earlier? 

The narrator was hoping to win at least one or two gold medals. He especially hoped he could win one for broad jump.

The previous year, as a second-year student at Ohio State University, he had set the world record for broad jump after having jumped 26 feet 8 inches.

iii. Why do you think the narrator considered Hitler 'childish'?

Hitler strongly believed that the Aryan race was the master race that was far superior to the rest of the people in the world. The narrator called this theory as childish as there was no concrete proof in his claims. He perhaps believed that Hitler just said so to make himself feel better, a behavior which one mostly sees in children.

iv. What surprise was in store for the narrator at the broad jump trials?

At the broad jump trials, the narrator was surprised to see an athlete making practice leaps of almost 26 feet. He learned that this was a German athlete called Luz Long whom Hitler had kept as a secret. Long was a strong contender for the broad jump gold medal.

v. Do you agree that the narrator was a skilled athlete? Why/Why not? 

Yes, I agree that the narrator, Jesse Owens, was a skilled athlete.

He had set a world record in broad jump earlier and was expected to win the broad jump event at the Olympics easily. He seemed to be famous for his skills across the world. This is evident from Luz Long's remark to the narrator: "You should be able to qualify with your eyes closed." Eventually, Owens did win the broad jump event.

Q2. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow. 

An angry athlete is an athlete who will make mistakes, as any coach will tell you. I was no exception.

i. Why was the narrator referring to himself as an 'angry athlete'?

 The narrator found the Nazi theory of Aryan superiority childish. But at the broad jump trials he saw Luz Long, a German athlete, performing amazingly well and learnt this athlete was a strong contender for the gold medal. The narrator felt that if Long did win the event, Hitler's theory would be proved right as he (the narrator) was an African American, a supposedly inferior race according to Hitler. These thoughts made the narrator angry.

ii. What impact did the narrator's emotional state have on his trials? 

The narrator's anger took control over him and affected his performance. On his first qualifying jump, he leaped from a few inches beyond the take-off board. He fouled even worse on his second attempt and was left with only attempt to qualify for the main event.

iii. What thought went through the narrator's mind after his first two qualifying jumps?

The narrator was angry with himself for having fouled on his first two qualifying jumps. He thought bitterly whether he had travelled 3000 miles from the US to Germany to get disqualified at the trials and make a fool of himself.

iv. Did the narrator eventually qualify for the main event? How?

 Yes, the narrator did qualify for the main event after his third qualifying jump.

He received sound advice from an unexpected source - Luz Long, the German athlete. Long gave the narrator a practical tip and asked him to draw a line a few inches before the take-off board. He further suggested that the narrator should focus on qualifying rather than on standing first in the trials. The narrator took this advice and qualified easily

v. What happened on the night before the broad jump finals?

The narrator went to Long's room on the night before the finals to thank Long for his advice. He was keenly aware that without Long's advice, he may not have cleared the qualifying round at all. The narrator and Long ended up chatting for two hours on varied topics. By the time the narrator left, a deep friendship had been established between the two athletes.

Q3. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

I turned to look into the friendly blue eyes of the tall German broad jumper. He had easily qualified for the finals on his first attempt. He offered me a firm handshake.

i. Who was the tall German broad jumper? How was the German physically different than the narrator?

The tall German broad jumper was Luz Long.

The German was physically quite different from the narrator who was African American was an inch taller tha e narrator and had a relatively lean and muscular frame. His face was chiselled, and he had clear blue eyes and blond hair. Thus, he had all the typical features associated with the ideal Aryan man.

ii. What was the narrator's initial opinion about the German? Why did it change? 

The narrator initially assumed that the German shared Hitler's beliefs about Aryan superiority. Hence, he felt some resentment towards the German.

However, once Long introduced himself and they got talking, Long assured the narrator that he did not believe in Aryan supremacy. Hence, the narrator's opinion changed

iii. What advice did the German give the narrator? What impact did the advice have on the narrator's state of mind?

The German asked the narrator Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of modern Olympic Games, believed that the true spirit of Olympics was not winning rather it was participating whole heartedly. He believed that winning was not something that should be given importance, rather it should be fighting hard and to the best of their abilities that should really matter. Luz Long did not win. But he gave his best during the event, thereby pushing Owens to do his best too.

iv. The narrator comes across as a humble person. Do you agree with this statement? Why/why not?

Yes, I agree that Jesse Owens comes across as a humble person.

He could have easily ignored Long's advice as Long was his opponent. Instead he took Long's advice in the right spirit. He was also willing to change his initial opinion about Long after he realised during their first interaction that Long did not believe in Aryan supremacy. Finally, after qualifying for the finals, he went to Long's room to thank Long for his help. All these instances show the narrator's humility.

Q 4. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

When I finally got up to leave, we both knew that a real friendship had been formed. Luz would go out to the field the next day trying to beat me if he could. But I knew that he wanted me to do my best-even if that meant my winning.

i. Where was the narrator? What was he doing there? 

The narrator was in Luz Long's room in the Olympic village on the night of the qualifying round.

He had gone to the room to thank Long for the valuable advice which helped him qualify for the broad jump finals scheduled the next day. The two athletes ended up talking for two hours on varied topics.

ii. What happened the following day during the main event?

As the narrator expected, Luz Long gave his best shot the next day during the main event and broke his own past record. This motivated the narrator to put his best foot forward, and the narrator not only won the event, but also set an Olympic record.

won the event, but also set an Olympic record.

iii. How did Long respond when the narrator won the broad jump finals? Why

does the narrator highlight this moment?

 Long rushed to the narrator's side to congratulate him the moment he landed after winning jump. He shook the narrator's hand sincerely.

The narrator highlights this moment because Long rushed forward to congratulate him even though Hitler was watching them. Also, this act made the narrator realise how special their friendship was; it transcended all the hate and competitiveness that surrounded them.

iv. How does the narrator describe the friendship he felt for Luz Long at that

moment? Why do you think the narrator makes this comparison?

The narrator describes the friendship between him and Long as a '24-karat friendship, that is something that was as valuable and cherished as pure gold. He felt that it was worth more than all the gold that could be melted from his cups and medals.

This comparison underscores the depth of the friendship between the two athletes, despite the fact that they had met only a day earlier. It also highlights how politics does not always succeed in creating a rift between common people.

v. Briefly describe Luz Long's character.

Luz Long was a tall, handsome, blue-eyed, blond German athlete who personified the "ideal Aryan man". However, he only looked the part. In reality, he did not believe he was any superior than the narrator. Long was a true sportsperson who did not hesitate to help the narrator. his opponent. However, he did not go easy on the narrator in any way and even broke his own past record. This pushed the narrator to do even better. His sportsmanship spirit was even more obvious from the way he rushed forward to congratulate the narrator.