Question 1

True or false: Roland Matthes swam for the United States in the 1976 Olympics.

Accepted Answer

False. Matthes was East German, competing for the GDR, and retired before the 1976 Games.

Question 2

True or false: Roland Matthes won Olympic gold in the 100m backstroke at the 1968 and 1972 Games.

Accepted Answer

True. He won gold in both 100m backstroke events at Mexico City 1968 and Munich 1972, dominating his era.

Question 3

True or false: Matthes set his last world record at age 21.

Accepted Answer

True. He set his final world record in the 200m backstroke at the 1973 World Aquatics Championships in Belgrade, in September 1973, when he was 21 (born November 17, 1951).

Question 4

True or false: Matthes never held a world record in the 200m backstroke.

Accepted Answer

False. He held the world record in the 200m backstroke from 1967 to 1974, lowering it multiple times.

Question 5

True or false: Roland Matthes never lost a single backstroke race at the European Championships.

Accepted Answer

True. From 1966 to 1974, Matthes won every European backstroke title, an unmatched streak of dominance.

Question 6

True or false: Roland Matthes won the 100-meter backstroke gold medal at both the 1968 Mexico City and 1972 Munich Olympics.

Accepted Answer

True. Matthes won the 100m backstroke in 1968 and 1972, and also the 200m backstroke both years, totaling four individual Olympic golds.

Question 7

True or false: Roland Matthes was a trained physician after his swimming career.

Accepted Answer

True. He studied medicine and became an orthopedic surgeon, a surprising shift from his athletic fame.

Question 8

True or false: Matthes once broke the 100m backstroke world record by over a second in a single race.

Accepted Answer

True. In 1967, he shattered the 100m backstroke record by 1.2 seconds, an unheard-of margin at the time.

Roland Matthes Trivia Questions