Check out this Olympic history trivia to help you get into the spirit as you cheer your favorite athletes on to gold and glory in the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, which are scheduled to start on February 4.

What year did the Olympic Games begin?

The first Olympics took place in Greece in 776 B.C. The Greeks loved competition and began the games to honor Zeus, the king of the gods.

Guess the Olympic motto: 

A. Man’s reach exceeds his grasp

B. Faster, Higher, Stronger

C. Refuse to lose

D. Dare to be Great

The answer is B. On July 20, 2021, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) approved a version of the motto that added a new word to the end, to recognize the unifying power of sport. Now the motto reads, “Faster, Higher, Stronger—Together.”

What are the colors of the Olympic flag?

Blue, yellow, black, green and red on a white background, which represent colors that are found in every competing nation’s flag.

How many Winter Olympics have there been?

The 2022 games will be the 24th. The Winter Games began in 1924, in Chamonix, France, with bobsled, curling, ice hockey, skiing and skating. Today, there are 15 winter sports.

Four Olympic Games have been canceled. What years, and why?

1. 1916: World War I

2. 1940: World War II

3. 1944: World War II

4. 2020: COVID-19 pandemic

What are the two winter sports that debuted in the Summer Olympics?

Figure skating made its Olympic debut in 1908 and ice hockey in 1920. In 1924, they were both moved to the first Winter Olympic Games.

Contrary to the name, gold medals are not made of solid gold. What other metal is used in their creation?

After 1912, gold medals contained mostly silver. Current gold medals are 92.5 percent silver and contain at least 6 grams of gold. Silver medals are made of pure silver, and bronze medals are actually red brass, a combination of copper and zinc.

There are only five countries that have been represented at every modern-era Summer Olympics. Can you name them?

Greece, Great Britain, France, Switzerland and Australia. For various reasons, many countries over the years have boycotted the games or been placed on temporary bans by the IOC.

Where will the 2022 Winter Olympic Games be held?

Beijing, China. The next Winter Games will be held in Milano Cortina, Italy in 2026, and the next two Summer Olympic Games will be held in Paris, France in 2024 and Los Angeles, California in 2028.

Drop some of this new Olympic knowledge at your viewing parties in February, and impress your friends while you watch Shawn White land a gnarly shred off the halfpipe.