Paris 2024 Olympic Firsts Quiz

The Summer 2024 Olympics in Paris ended a little while ago on Sunday, August 11th. Congratulations to all athletes who came to these Olympics and competed fairly and to the best of their ability! This GeoFact of the Day quiz highlights medal winners representing countries — and an athlete valiantly competing for the Refugee Team — that have not won a medal previously or have not won a gold medal until Paris 2024. Three Caribbean island countries, three African countries, one European country, one Central American country, and the Refugee Olympic Team are all represented in this post. Quiz answers are listed below — enjoy and good luck!

1)      GRENADA earned bronze medals in men’s javelin throw and men’s decathlon. 2024 is the first Olympic year in which Grenada won more than one medal. Which name is not one of the athletes who won these medals?
A — Lindon Victor
B — Anderson Peters
C — Timothy Conch

2)      BOTSWANA celebrates its first ever gold medal, which was won by Letsile Tebogo. Letsile also earned a silver medal as a teammate on the men’s ___________ team.
A — badminton
B — 4 x 400 meter relay
C — football

3)      ____________ is the home country of Cindy Ngamba, the women’s 75 kg boxer who earned the first ever medal (bronze) on the Refugee Olympic Team.
A — CAMEROON
B — SOMALIA
C — YEMEN

4)      True or false: EL SALVADOR is the Central American country winning its first ever gold medal.

5)      Track athlete Julien Alfred won a gold medal in the women’s 100 meter dash and a silver medal in the women’s 200 meter dash at the Paris 2024 Olympics. She won these first ever medals on behalf of which Caribbean island country?
A — SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
B — SAINT LUCIA
C — TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
D — BARBADOS

6)      Two freestyle wrestlers — Chermen Valiev and Islam Dudaev — won the first ever medals (both bronze) for their country in Southeastern Europe. Which country?
A — ALBANIA
B — GREECE
C — NORTH MACEDONIA
D — MONTENEGRO

7)      David de Pina (Daniel Varela de Pina) won a bronze medal in men’s 51 kg boxing and therefore earned the first ever medal for which island country in Africa? Hint: this country is an archipelago located west of mainland West Africa, and the country’s name translates to green cape in Portuguese.
A — MAURITIUS
B — SEYCHELLES
C — SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE
D — COMOROS
E — CABO VERDE
F — MADAGASCAR

8)      True or false: Thea LaFond competed in women’s triple jump and earned the first ever medal — and a gold one at that — for DOMINICA.























ANSWERS

Question 1:
C . . . . . Timothy Conch

Question 2:
B . . . . . 4 x 400 meter relay

Question 3:
A . . . . . Cameroon

Question 4:
False . . . . . Guatemala

Question 5:
B . . . . . Saint Lucia

Question 6:
A . . . . . Albania

Question 7:
E . . . . . Cabo Verde

Question 8:
True

Independence Day in Cabo Verde

People living on the nine inhabited islands of CABO VERDE (Cape Verde) commemorate their country's independence today. Cabo Verde achieved independence from Portugal in 1975. Happy Independence Day!

Cabo Verde is Known For...

●    Singer Cesária Évora
●    The beaches of Boa Vista and Sal
●    Hikes on the islands of Santo Antão and São Nicolau
●    Trade-winds windsurfing
●    Mount Fogo

Listed in The Africa Book; the MLA citation is below. What are other "trademarks" of this African country? Feel free to share your thoughts with a comment!

Phillips et al. The Africa Book: A Journey through Every
          Country in the Continent. Lonely Planet, 2007.

— #AfricaWeek —

Cabo Verde Exports

The following items are major exports of CABO VERDE (Cape Verde): bananas, basalt, beans, clay, coffee, corn (maize), fish, footwear, fuel, gypsum, industrial products, kaolin, limestone, peanuts, sweet potatoes, sugarcane, textiles, and transportation equipment. According to the International Monetary Fund (data.imf.org), countries and territories buying and importing most of those exports (February 2017 statistics) include Portugal (top importer), Spain, Morocco, the Netherlands, Italy, the United Kingdom, Togo, El Salvador, Turkey, the United States, Malaysia, Moldova, Sierra Leone, Gibraltar, Guinea, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Panama, and Guyana.

Cabo Verde Extinct and Endangered Species

As of January 29th, 2015, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ for CABO VERDE (Cape Verde) off the coast of West Africa lists one extinct species (the Cape Verde Giant Skink lizard) since the beginning of IUCN recordkeeping, 7 critically endangered species, and 20 endangered species. Cabo Verde's critically endangered species on the IUCN List are as follows: Balearic Shearwater, Bouvier's Leaf-toed Gecko, Northern Bald Ibis, Raso Lark, and three sea snail species (Conus lugubris, Conus mordeirae, and Conus salreiensis). The three sea snail species are endemic to Cabo Verde. Conus lugubris is found in the northern area of São Vicente, an island of northwest Cabo Verde. Conus mordeirae is found in the southwest portion of Sal island, while Conus salreiensis is found on the northwest peninsula of Boa Vista island. Did You Know? Since December 2013, Cape Verde is officially known as Cabo Verde, the Portuguese version of its name! Portuguese is Cabo Verde's official language, while Cape Verdean Creole is a commonly spoken native language.

Cabo Verde post (link opens in new tab/window)

5 Smallest African Countries

Each of the five smallest countries in Africa are island countries and are less than 1,000 square miles in area. The smallest African country is SEYCHELLES, which is located north of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The second smallest is SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE, an Atlantic Ocean island country located south of Nigeria and west of Gabon in Western Africa. The third smallest, MAURITIUS is found east of Madagascar and Réunion in the Indian Ocean. The fourth smallest is COMOROS, a Muslim country (98% of the people worship Islam) located in the Mozambique Channel between Mozambique and Madagascar. Lastly, the fifth smallest African country is CAPE VERDE, which you would find west of Northern Africa and countries like Mauritania and Senegal. Below are the area stats for the five smallest African countries & convenient links to their posts.

     1. SEYCHELLES - 176 sq. mi / 455 sq. km

     2. SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE - 371 sq. mi / 960 sq. km

     3. MAURITIUS - 788 sq. mi / 2,040 sq. km

     4. COMOROS - 838 sq. miles / 2,170 sq. km

     5. CAPE VERDE - 1556 sq. miles / 4,030 sq. km

Source for area stats: Hammond World Atlas. Sixth Edition. Hammond World Atlas Corporation, 2010.

Cabo Verde

Officially known as the Republic of Cabo Verde, CABO VERDE (Cape Verde) is a group of islands in the Atlantic Ocean in Western Africa. The archipelago is located about 400 miles west of Senegal. Since December 2013, the official name of the country is now known as Cabo Verde, the Portuguese spelling. The former official name was Cape Verde, the English spelling. This for-government-purposes name change reflects the fact that Portuguese is Cabo Verde's official language. Cabo Verde's currency is the Cabo Verdean Escudo, and its ISO 4217 currency code is CVE. Cape Verde gained independence from Portugal on July 5th, 1975.

● ● ● ● ●  People and Places  ● ● ● ● ●  According to Encyclopædia Britannica, Cabo Verde’s population in the year 2020 was about 557,400 and was ranked 174th among populations of the whole world’s countries, dependencies, and territories. The country's capital, located on the southern coast of Santiago island, is Praia. Based on previous years' data, GeoFact of the Day Blog estimates Praia's 2016 population to be almost 135,000. Attractions and landmarks in Praia and surrounding areas include the Archaeology Museum, Farol de D. Maria Pia lighthouse on Ponta (Point) Termosa, Mercado de Sucupira street market, Praca Alexandre Albuquerque town square, Prainha Beach, Presidential Palace (Palácio Presidencial), and Quebra Canela Beach. Other cities and towns in Cabo Verde include Igreja, Mindelo, Nova Sintra, Pedra Badejo, Santa Maria, São Filipe, and Tarrafal. About three-fifths of residents live in a city or other urbanized setting.

In addition to Portuguese, a Cabo Verdean Creole language known as Kabuverdianu is widely used for communication. About 500,000 Cabo Verdean citizens (2016 estimate) and a total of about 875,000 people around the world can communicate in Kabuverdianu. Split into the Barlavento (northern islands) and Sotavento (southern islands) dialects, Kabuverdianu is a statutory language of national identity according to the nation's Constitution. Most Cabo Verdean natives are multiracial, often descended from a mix of Caucasian, African, and/or Arab ancestors. Over 90% of Cabo Verdeans identify as Christians (mostly Roman Catholic), and about 3% are Muslims. Cabo Verdeans also believe in indigenous beliefs, the Bahá'í Faith, Judaism, and other minority religions.

● ● ● ● ●  Land Features  ● ● ● ● ●  Major islands include Santiago (largest), Boa Vista, Fogo, Maio, Sal, Santo Antão, and São Vicente. Some small islands and islets — including Ilhéu Branco, Ilhéu de Cima, Ilhéu Grande, Ilhéu Raso, and Santa Luzia — are not inhabited by people. Cabo Verde's highest point is Pico do Fogo ("Fire Peak"), an active stratovolcano towering over the northeastern portion of Fogo island. Most of Cabo Verde's lakes are filled with little to no water, hence they are salt lakes. One salt lake with a reasonable amount of water sits in the Pedra de Lume ("Stone of Fire") crater, located on Sal island (northeastern area). The country lacks major rivers, existing rivers have relatively little water, and some rivers and streams have wide river beds — such as the central river on Boa Vista island.

This post was updated with more information on October 11th, 2016.