James Wolfensohn

[table]

Parameter,Value

Full Name,James David Wolfensohn

Born,1 December 1933 in Sydney; New South Wales

[/table]

James Wolfensohn competed for Australia in fencing at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics but his business career has far outshone his sporting one. He received a degree in law from the University of Sydney and worked briefly as a lawyer in Australia before attending Harvard Business School. After receiving his MBA he worked in Switzerland, Australia, and London before settling in the United States as a senior executive with Salomon Brothers. In 1980 he became a US citizen, and began his own investment firm, James D. Wolfensohn, Inc., which included among its partners Paul Volcker, former chairman of the US Federal Reserve Bank.

James Wolfensohn

In 1995, President Bill Clinton nominated Wolfensohn to become President of the World Bank, and he assumed that post on 1 July 1995. The bank’s board of executive directors unanimously supported him for a second five-year term in 2000, and he became only the third person to serve two terms in that position.

After leaving the World Bank he formed Wolfensohn & Company, LLC, a private investment firm and advisory group that provided consulting advice to governments and large corporations. He also became chairman of the International Advisory Board of Citigroup. He also served one year as special envoy for Gaza Disengagement for the Quartet in the Middle East, a post to which he was named by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. In 2005, James Wolfensohn also founded the Wolfensohn Center for Development at the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank.

He has received numerous honors. He was an honorary trustee of the Brookings Institution, trustee and former chairman of the board for the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, chairman emeritus of the Carnegie Hall, and of the John F. Kennedy for the Performing Arts in Washington, and was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He was awarded the Order of Australia in 1987 and received an honorary knighthood and OBE in 1995.

[table]

Games/Sport,Event,Position

1956 Fencing,Men’s Team Épée,4 p1 r1/3

[/table]

Silver and Bronze Medal Trivia

OK, we know that Michael Phelps has won the most Olympic medals, with 22, and the most Olympic gold medals, with 18. But what about silver and bronze medals – who has the most of the other podium medals?

For silver medals the list of all those with 5 or more is as follows:

[table]

Silvers,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

6,Aleksandr Dityatin,M,S,URS,GYM

6,Mikhail Voronin,M,S,URS,GYM

6,Shirley Babashoff,F,S,USA,SWI

5,Larysa Latynina,F,S,URS,GYM

5,Nikolay Andrianov,M,S,URS,GYM

5,Edoardo Mangiarotti,M,S,ITA,FEN

5,Raisa Smetanina,F,W,EUN/URS,CCS

5,Aleksandr Popov,M,S,EUN/RUS,SWI

5,Raisa Smetanina,F,W,URS,CCS

5,Zoltán von Halmay,M,S,HUN,SWI

5,Leisel Jones,F,S,AUS,SWI

5,Anky van Grunsven,F,S,NED,EQU

5,Yury Titov,M,S,URS,GYM

5,Katalin Kovács,F,S,HUN,CAN

5,Mariya Horokhovska,F,S,URS,GYM

5,Gustavo Marzi,M,S,ITA,FEN

5,Andrea Ehrig-Schöne-Mitscherlich,F,W,GDR,SSK

5,Dagmar Hase,F,S,GER,SWI

5,Bogdan Musiol,M,W,GDR/GER,BOB

5,Viktor Lisitsky,M,S,URS,GYM

[/table]

How about individual silver medals? Who has the most of those? Here are all those who have won 4 or more individual silver medals?

[table]

IndSilvers,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

5,Larysa Latynina,F,S,URS,GYM

5,Aleksandr Dityatin,M,S,URS,GYM

5,Shirley Babashoff,F,S,USA,SWI

5,Andrea Ehrig-Schöne-Mitscherlich,F,W,GDR,SSK

4,Raisa Smetanina,F,W,EUN/URS,CCS

4,Raisa Smetanina,F,W,URS,CCS

4,Zoltán von Halmay,M,S,HUN,SWI

4,Mikhail Voronin,M,S,URS,GYM

4,Karin Enke-Kania,F,W,GDR,SSK

4,Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann-Kleemann,F,W,GER,SSK

4,Mariya Horokhovska,F,S,URS,GYM

4,Kirsty Coventry,F,S,ZIM,SWI

4,Kateřina Neumannová,F,W,CZE,CCS

4,Hryhoriy Misiutin,M,S,EUN/UKR,GYM

4,David Cal,M,S,ESP,CAN

4,Hryhoriy Misiutin,M,S,EUN,GYM

4,Frankie Fredericks,M,S,NAM,ATH

4,Ivica Kostelić,M,W,CRO,ASK

[/table]

What about those who have won silver medals but no other Olympic medal? All they won were silver medals. Somewhat surprisingly, 10 Olympians have won 4 or more silvers, but no other Olympic medals. And here they are:

[table]

Silvers,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

5,Viktor Lisitsky,M,S,URS,GYM

4,Frankie Fredericks,M,S,NAM,ATH

4,Ivica Kostelić,M,W,CRO,ASK

4,Tsuyoshi Yamanaka,M,S,JPN,SWI

4,Hilkka Riihivuori-Kuntola,F,W,FIN,CCS

4,Vincenzo Pinton,M,S,ITA,FEN

4,Ian Stark,M,S,GBR,EQU

4,Frank Wiegand,M,S,GDR/GER,SWI

4,Kara Lynn Joyce,F,S,USA,SWI

4,Renzo Nostini,M,S,ITA,FEN

[/table]

What about those athletes who only won individual silver medals – no team medals, no golds, no bronzes? We got that list too – here it is:

[table]

IndSilvers,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

4,Frankie Fredericks,M,S,NAM,ATH

4,Ivica Kostelić,M,W,CRO,ASK

3,Viktor Lisitsky,M,S,URS,GYM

3,Tsuyoshi Yamanaka,M,S,JPN,SWI

3,Raelene Boyle,F,S,AUS,ATH

3,Thor Henning,M,S,SWE,SWI

3,Peter-Michael Kolbe,M,S,FRG,ROW

3,Tim McKee,M,S,USA,SWI

3,Leah Poulos-Mueller,F,W,USA,SSK

3,Robert Pražák,M,S,TCH,GYM

3,Tan Liangde,M,S,CHN,DIV

3,Aleksandar Tomov,M,S,BUL,WRE

3,Ernie Webb,M,S,GBR,ATH

[/table]

OK, that’s it for silver medal trivia. What about bronze medals? Who has the most of them? Here is that list:

[table]

Bronzes,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

6,Aleksey Nemov,M,S,RUS,GYM

6,Franziska van Almsick,F,S,GER,SWI

6,Heikki Savolainen,M,S,FIN,GYM

6,Merlene Ottey-Page,F,S,JAM,ATH

6,Harri Kirvesniemi,M,W,FIN,CCS

5,Natalie Coughlin,F,S,USA,SWI

5,Stefania Belmondo,F,W,ITA,CCS

5,Daniel Revenu,M,S,FRA,FEN

5,Phil Edwards,M,S,CAN,ATH

5,Antje Buschschulte,F,S,GER,SWI

5,Arie de Jong,M,S,NED,FEN

[/table]

And here is the list of those winning the most individual bronze medals:

[table]

IndBronzes,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

5,Aleksey Nemov,M,S,RUS,GYM

5,Merlene Ottey-Page,F,S,JAM,ATH

4,Takashi Ono,M,S,JPN,GYM

4,Vitaly Shcherbo,M,S,BLR/EUN,GYM

4,Dmitry Sautin,M,S,EUN/RUS,DIV

4,Yelena Välbe,F,W,EUN/RUS,CCS

4,Anja Pärson,F,W,SWE,ASK

4,Roald Larsen,M,W,NOR,SSK

4,Yelena Välbe,F,W,EUN,CCS

4,William Merz,M,S,USA,GYM

4,Vitaly Shcherbo,M,S,BLR,GYM

[/table]

Finally, who has won the most bronze medals, and the most individual bronze medals, while winning no other Olympic medals? Following are those two lists:

[table]

Bronzes,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

6,Harri Kirvesniemi,M,W,FIN,CCS

5,Phil Edwards,M,S,CAN,ATH

5,Antje Buschschulte,F,S,GER,SWI

5,Arie de Jong,M,S,NED,FEN

4,Vitaly Shcherbo,M,S,BLR,GYM

4,Jetze Doorman,M,S,NED,FEN

4,Robert Dover,M,S,USA,EQU

[/table]

Now for the list of the most individual bronze medals, with no team medals, no gold medals, and no silver medals.

[table]

IndBronzes,Name,Gdr,Ssn,NOC,Sport

4,Yelena Välbe,F,W,EUN/RUS,CCS

3,Angel Martino,F,S,USA,SWI

3,Stan Rowley,M,S,AUS,ATH

3,George Breen,M,S,USA,SWI

4,Vitaly Shcherbo,M,S,BLR,GYM

3,Hugues Duboscq,M,S,FRA,SWI

3,Curtis Myden,M,S,CAN,SWI

3,Amarilys Savón,F,S,CUB,JUD

3,Sheng Zetian,M,S,CHN,WRE

3,Hans van Helden,M,W,NED,SSK

3,Arnold Vanderlijde,M,S,NED,BOX

3,Gabi Zange-Schönbrunn,F,W,GDR,SSK

3,Marian Zieliński,M,S,POL,WLT

[/table]

So with these lists, and probably about $4.50, you can get a nice coffee at Starbucks.

Women’s Olympic and World Cup Champions – Updated US List

After the US Women won the World Cup last week, this greatly changes the list of women who have won both an Olympic title and a World Cup title in football. This is almost a purely American list, with 4 Norwegians on the list from the 1995 World Cup and 2000 Olympics (Gro Espeseth, Bente Nordby, Marianne Pettersen, Hege Riise). Below is the list of the American women who have won both titles, and the number of times.

Christie Pearce-Rampone
Christie Pearce-Rampone

The leader with 5 such championships is Christie Pearce-Rampone, with three Olympic gold medals (2004/08/12) and two World Cups (1999/2015). Seven American women have four titles – Heather O’Reilly, Shannon Boxx, Brandi Chastain, Joy Biefeld-Fawcett, Julie Foudy, Kristine Lilly, and Mia Hamm. One could also add Hope Solo to this list, but this reflects one of the difficulties of compiling such a list. In 2004 Solo was on the Olympic team, but never played as a backup goaltender. Likewise, Tiffany Roberts was on the 2004 Olympic team but never played.

Brandi Chastain
Brandi Chastain

Only Heather Mitts has three such titles without winning both, as an Olympic gold medalist in 2004/08/12. Five Americans have won two Olympic gold medals, without winning the World Cup – Aly Wagner, Angela Hucles, Kate Sobrero-Markgraf, Lindsay Tarpley (2004/08), and Rachel Buehler (2008/12).

[table]

Name,Total,#Oly,#WC,OlyYear(s),WCYear(s)

Christie Pearce-Rampone,5,3,2,2004/08/12,1999/2015

Heather O’Reilly,4,3,1,2004/08/12,2015

Shannon Boxx,4,3,1,2004/08/12,2015

Brandi Chastain,4,2,2,1996/2004,1991/99

Joy Biefeld-Fawcett,4,2,2,1996/2004,1991/99

Julie Foudy,4,2,2,1996/2004,1991/99

Kristine Lilly,4,2,2,1996/2004,1991/99

Mia Hamm,4,2,2,1996/2004,1991/99

Abby Wambach,3,2,1,2004/2012,2015

Amy Rodriguez,3,2,1,2008/12,2015

Briana Scurry,3,2,1,1996/2004,1999

Carli Lloyd,3,2,1,2008/12,2015

Cindy Parlow,3,2,1,1996/2004,1999

Hope Solo,3,2,1,2008/12,2015

Kate Sobrero-Markgraf,3,2,1,2004/08,1999

Lauren Cheney-Holiday,3,2,1,2008/12,2015

Tobin Heath,3,2,1,2008/12,2015

Carla Werden-Overbeck,3,1,2,1996,1991/99

Michelle Akers,3,1,2,1996,1991/99

Alex Morgan,2,1,1,2012,2015

Becky Sauerbrunn,2,1,1,2012,2015

Carin Jennings-Gabarra,2,1,1,1996,1991

Kelley O’Hara,2,1,1,2012,2015

Lori Chalupny,2,1,1,2008,2015

Megan Rapinoe,2,1,1,2012,2015

Shannon MacMillan,2,1,1,1996,1999

Sydney Leroux,2,1,1,2012,2015

Tiffany Roberts,2,1,1,1996,1999

Tiffeny Milbrett,2,1,1,1996,1999

Tisha Venturini,2,1,1,1996,1999

[/table]

Small Nations Competing at the Olympics

Nick Zaccardi, NBC Olympics maven, posited that if Fiji gets 50+ athletes qualified for the 2016 Olympics, that it might be the most ever for a nation with less than 1,000,000 population. I tweeted recently that it would be and that no such current nation had had more than 40 competitors at a single Olympics. Unfortunately, I did not go back far enough checking those stats, and it has happened before.

Luxembourg is the only nation with < 106 population (as of 2015) that has had 40 or more competitors at a single Olympics, and they have done it several times, with a high of 52 in 1960. They also had 47 in 1928, 45 in 1948, and 44 three times – 1936, 1948, and 1952.

The first such nation to compete at the Olympics was again Luxembourg, in 1900, although this was not known for over 80 years. Michel Théato, winner of the 1900 marathon, was always considered French until French athletics historian Alain Bouillé discovered in the early 1980s that he was actually a Luxembourgeois national. In 1908 and 1912 Iceland competed, although it was a Danish territory in both those years. From 1920-28 Luxembourg and Monaco competed, along with Malta in 1928. It was not until 1936 that six such small nations competed – Bermuda, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, and Monaco. In 2012, fully 43 such small nations competed at London.

Through 2012, such small nations have competed 398 times at the Summer Olympics – we did not check Winter Olympics for this stat. This has been done in all by 43 nations, although Guyana (British Guiana), Belize (British Honduras), and Samoa (Western Samoa), competed under two different names in various years.

The following list is inclusive of all nations who have competed at the Olympics, with 10 or more competitors, both men and women, at a single Summer Olympics, and currently have a population under a million. I did not try to go back and check populations at the time of their Olympic participation – sorry, but that would be a huge effort. This also eliminates a few small nations that no longer exist as nations, notably Netherlands Antilles and Newfoundland, both of which have competed at the Olympics, but never with very many athletes.

[table]

Nation,3LA,Year,###

Luxembourg,LUX,1960,52

Luxembourg,LUX,1928,47

Luxembourg,LUX,1948,45

Luxembourg,LUX,1924,44

Luxembourg,LUX,1936,44

Luxembourg,LUX,1952,44

Montenegro,MNE,2012,33

Iceland,ISL,1988,32

Iceland,ISL,1984,30

U.S. Virgin Islands,ISV,1984,29

Iceland,ISL,1992,27

Iceland,ISL,2008,27

Iceland,ISL,2012,27

Iceland,ISL,2004,26

The Bahamas,BAH,1996,26

Iceland,ISL,1972,25

Luxembourg,LUX,1920,25

The Bahamas,BAH,2000,25

The Bahamas,BAH,2008,25

U.S. Virgin Islands,ISV,1992,25

Fiji,FIJ,1988,23

Cyprus,CYP,2000,22

Guam,GUM,1992,22

The Bahamas,BAH,1984,22

The Bahamas,BAH,2004,22

U.S. Virgin Islands,ISV,1988,22

Luxembourg,LUX,1912,21

The Bahamas,BAH,2012,21

U.S. Virgin Islands,ISV,1976,21

Bermuda,BER,1992,20

Cyprus,CYP,2004,20

The Bahamas,BAH,1972,20

Guam,GUM,1988,19

Iceland,ISL,1948,19

Montenegro,MNE,2008,19

San Marino,SMR,1984,19

Barbados,BAR,2000,18

Fiji,FIJ,1992,18

Iceland,ISL,2000,18

Barbados,BAR,1988,17

Barbados,BAR,1992,17

Cyprus,CYP,1992,17

Cyprus,CYP,1996,17

Cyprus,CYP,2008,17

Fiji,FIJ,1996,17

San Marino,SMR,1992,17

Barbados,BAR,1984,16

Bermuda,BER,1976,16

San Marino,SMR,1980,16

The Bahamas,BAH,1968,16

The Bahamas,BAH,1988,16

U.S. Virgin Islands,ISV,1972,16

Antigua and Barbuda,ANT,1988,15

Antigua and Barbuda,ANT,1984,14

Cyprus,CYP,1980,14

Fiji,FIJ,1984,14

The Bahamas,BAH,1992,14

Antigua and Barbuda,ANT,1992,13

Antigua and Barbuda,ANT,1996,13

Barbados,BAR,1972,13

Barbados,BAR,1996,13

Cyprus,CYP,2012,13

Iceland,ISL,1976,13

Luxembourg,LUX,2008,13

The Bahamas,BAH,1960,13

Bermuda,BER,1948,12

Bermuda,BER,1984,12

Bermuda,BER,1988,12

Iceland,ISL,1936,12

Liechtenstein,LIE,1988,12

Luxembourg,LUX,1964,12

U.S. Virgin Islands,ISV,1996,12

Barbados,BAR,1976,11

Belize,BIZ,1984,11

Luxembourg,LUX,1956,11

Luxembourg,LUX,1972,11

Malta,MLT,1936,11

Monaco,MON,1960,11

Samoa,SAM,1988,11

San Marino,SMR,1988,11

Seychelles,SEY,1980,11

Seychelles,SEY,1992,11

The Bahamas,BAH,1964,11

The Bahamas,BAH,1976,11

Antigua and Barbuda,ANT,1976,10

Barbados,BAR,2004,10

Belize,BIZ,1988,10

Belize,BIZ,1992,10

Bermuda,BER,2004,10

Cayman Islands,CAY,1992,10

Cyprus,CYP,1984,10

Guyana,GUY,1984,10

Luxembourg,LUX,2004,10

Malta,MLT,1960,10

San Marino,SMR,1976,10

St. Kitts & Nevis,SKN,1996,10

[/table]

Jaroslav Drobný

[table]

Parameter,Value

Used Name,Jaroslav Drobný

Born,12 October 1921; Praha (Prague) (CZE)

Died,13 September 2001; Tooting-Greater London (GBR)

Affiliations,ČLTK Praha (CZE)

[/table]

Jaroslav Drobný won an Olympic silver medal with the Czechoslovakian ice hockey squad at the 1948 St. Moritz Olympics, but was more famous as a tennis player. For years, he played ice hockey during the winter and tennis in the summer, but his hockey career was cut short in 1949. During a tennis tournament in Gstaad, Switzerland, he defected from communist Czechoslovakia with a fellow Davis Cup player, Vladimír Černík. Drobný, who had won the 1947 World Championships with Czechoslovakia, could no longer represent his country on the ice.

As an Egyptian citizen, Drobný won Grand Slam singles titles at Roland Garros (1951, 1952) and Wimbledon (1954). His 1954 Wimbledon championship made him the first left-hander to win that title. He was also a five-time runner-up in Grand Slam events; three times at Roland Garros (1946, 1948, 1950), and twice at Wimbledon (1949, 1952). His ice hockey legacy could still be found in his dark prescription glasses, which he needed following a hockey accident that severely affected his eyesight.

Drobný uniquely competed at Wimbledon for four different “nations.” He first played there in 1938, representing Czechoslovakia, and again under that designation in 1946-49. In 1939, following political upheaval in Europe, he was listed from the Nazi-occupied protectorate of Bohemia-Moravia. Following his 1949 defection, Drobný was given an Egyptian passport, and won his Grand Slam titles representing that nation from 1950-59. In 1959, he traded his Egyptian passport for a British one, and lived in London for the rest of his life. During a 15-year amateur career, he won over 130 singles titles, and was world ranked in the top 10 from 1946-55. Drobný was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1983. In 1997 he was made a member of the International Ice Hockey Hall of Fame.

Farhang Mohtadi

[table]

Parameter,Value

Full Name,Matthew Farhang Mohtadi

Used Name,Farhang Mohtadi

Original Name, فرهنگ •مهتدی

Born,6 January 1926

[/table]

Farhang Mohtadi played basketball for Iran at the 1948 Olympics, appearing in one game, a loss against France. He had earned a B.E. degree from Teheran University in 1945 but in 1948 was studying at Birmingham University in England. Mohtadi was better known as a tennis player and during his years in England played at Wimbledon seven consecutive years (1949-55), although he lost in the first round each year. In 1954 he lost in the final of the North England Hardcourts Championships to Polish player Ignacy Tłoczyński. Mohtadi also excelled at table tennis, making the final of the 1944 Middle East Championships, and squash, competing in the British Open Championships.

He eventually earned a B.Sc. degree and later a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Birmingham. Mohtadi finally settled in Canada where he taught at the University of Calgary, serving as chairman of the department of chemical and petroleum engineering and director of public relations in the engineering department.

His son, Nick Mohtadi, played briefly on the professional tennis tour, including a bronze medal win at the 1979 World University Games in mixed doubles and one doubles appearance at Wimbledon. Nick Mohtadi later became a renowned orthopaedic surgeon at the University of Calgary, with special expertise in sports medicine and clinical epidemiology.

Ion Ţiriac

[table]

Parameter,Value

Full Name,Ion Ioan Ţiriac

Born,9 May 1939 in Braşov; ROU

Measurements,183 cm / 84 kg

Affiliations,Sportul Studenţesc; Bucureşti

[/table]

Ion Ţiriac played ice hockey for Romania at the 1964 Winter Olympics, but it was only a prelude to a much larger life. His main sport was tennis and he became one of the top players in the world, winning the 1970 French Open men’s doubles alongside Ilie Năstase. Ţiriac’s best finish in a singles Grand Slam was making the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 1968. He was best known for his doubles play, winning 22 career professional titles.

After his playing career ended in the mid-1970s, Ţiriac turned to managing athletes, most notably as the coach and manager of Boris Becker from 1984-1993. He also coached or managed, among others, Năstase, Guillermo Vilas, Mary Joe Fernández, Goran Ivanišević, and Marat Safin. Ţiriac also started running and managing tennis events, including the Madrid Tennis Open, the Italian Open, and in Romania, the BRD Năstase Țiriac Trophy. In 2013 Ţiriac was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Țiriac’s business interests then branched out and in 1990, after the fall of Communism in Romania, he founded Banca Țiriac, the first private bank in that country. The bank merged several times, eventually becoming UniCredit Ţiriac Bank, one of the largest banks in Romania. He also became involved in other businesses, including insurance, auto leasing, auto dealerships, and local airlines, with his various ventures entitled Tiriac Holdings, TiriacAIR, HVB Tiriac Bank, Allianz-Tiriac Asigurari Romania, TiriacAuto, Tiriac Leasing, and Tir Travel.

In 2007 Ţiriac was named to Forbes list of the wealthiest people in the world, and in 2014 his net worth was estimated at over $2 billion (US). He was considered, at that time, as the richest former athlete of all-time.

[table]

Games,Sport,Team,Position

1964,Ice Hockey,Romania,12

[/table]