2010 - Top left: Poland devastated by floods in May; right - national mourning after President Lech Kaczynski and First lady Maria die in Smolensk; bottom left: baby pygmy hypo, Euforio, born at Wroclaw Zoo.photos - PAP
Test yourself with the questions below, keep a note of your answers and check out the key (which you can get to from the link at the bottom of the page) to see if you are correct. Then find out your score to see if you are a Polish newshound, or a Polish news-novice.
National1. Bronislaw Komorowski received the most votes in the first round of the summer’s presidential elections. But who came second: Was it a) Grzegorz Napieralski b) Janusz Korwin-Mikke or c) Jaroslaw Kaczynski?
2. In January, the national statistical office (GUS) released figures showing Poland’s population, which had increased by 37,000 compared to the year before. Was Poland’s population recorded at a) 38.173 million b) 42.173 million or c) 45.173 million?
3. Flooding devastated many regions of Poland in the spring and summer this year. But how much did Poland receive from the EU’s Solidarity fund to rebuild affected areas? Was it a) 50 million euros b) 105 milion euros or c) 150 million euros?
4. Archbishop Henryk Hoser threatened to “excommunicate” MPs who supported which bill in parliament? Was it a proposed law on a) abortion b) suicide, or c) IVF
5. How many of Poland’s politicians and military elite and crew died in the Smolensk air disaster in April? Was it a) 86 b) 96 or c) 106?
6. The equality minister Elzbieta Radziszewska, no less, caused some embarrassment to the government when she was charged by her critics of discriminating against gays. She said that homosexuals a) should not be allowed in the army b) should not be allowed to teach in religious schools, or c) should not be allowed. Period.
7. The late president, Lech Kaczynski, who died in April’s Smolensk air disaster, is buried with his wife Maria in the historic Wawel Castle in Krakow. But with which former Polish head of state does his tomb lay next to? Is it a) Bolesław III Krzywousty (the wry-mouth) b) Ignacy Jan Paderewski, or c) Józef Klemens Piłsudski?
8. After President Kaczynski died, the speaker of parliament, Bronislaw Komorowski was constitutionally obliged to become acting head of state. But after Komorowski won the presidential election in July, who took over as acting head of state until he was sworn in as president in August? Was it a) Donald Tusk b) Radek Sikorski, or c) Grzegorz Schetyna?
Sport1 What was the name of the cross country skier who was given a two year competition ban this year for EPO doping? Was it a) Kornelia Marek b) Justyna Kowalczyk or c) Bernadeta Maria Bocek-Piotrowska?
2 How many medals did Poland bring back from the Barcelona European Athletics Championships in July? Was it a) 5, b) 8, or c) 9?
3 After a ballot at Macdonald’s restaurants (!) in December, UEFA christened the two official mascots for the Euro 2012 football championships, to be co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine. Are the two mascots’ names a) Slavek and Slavko b) Siemko and Strimko or c) Klemek and Ladko?
4. Which team won Poland’s Ekstraklasa first division football championship in the 2009/2010 season but sacked its manager early in the 2010/2011 season? Was it a) Legia Warszawa b) Wisla Krakow, or c) Lech Poznan?
5. Robert Kubica is Poland’s first and only F1 grand prix racer. But for which team does he currently drive for? Is it a) Renault b) BMW Sauber, or c) Mercedes?
International1. Towards the end of the year, Germany pledged how much in financial aid for the Auschwitz Museum in southern Poland? Was it a) 20 million euros b) 40 million euros, or c) 60 million euros?
2. The sound of the vuvuzela was ubiquitous during the FIFA World Cup in South Africa in the summer. But which organisation in Poland purchased hundreds of them to enchance their activities? Was it a) the Warsaw Philharmonic, b) the Solidarity Trade Union, or c) Warsaw’s traffic police?
3. A 2008 US embassy in Warsaw cable, revealed by the whisteblowing web site Wikileaks, recounted how Poland was not best pleased when it learnt that a battery of Patriot missiles offered by the United States to be stationed in the country would not have operative, live warheads attached. The cable says that the then defence minister at the time responded by saying a) “We wanted missile but we got potted plants” b) “You must be joking!” or c) “OK, so our troops are withdrawing from Afghanistan!”?
Business/finance1. The Polish Pavilion at the 2010 World EXPO trade fair in Shanghai attracted a record number of visitors. But how many people visited the pavilion? Was it a) 8 million b) 10 million or c) 14 million?
2. Government advisor on atomic issues Hanna Trojanowska announced in March that Poland’s first nuclear power station will be built in Zarnowiec. But when did she say it would start producing energy commercially? Was it in 1) 2021 B) 2031, or c) 2031?
3. A former prime minister was chosen as president of the National Bank of Poland after the death of Slawomir Skrzypek in the Smolensk plane disaster. Is the new central bank chief a) Leszek Miller b) Jaroslaw Kaczynski, or c) Marek Belka?
4) Poland’s interest rates are at a record low and the MPC has not changed them since June 2009. Is the benchmark rate a) 3.5% b) 6.5%, or c) 2.5%?
Culture1. Who was the winner of the prestigious International Chopin Competition, which is held every five years in Warsaw? Was it a) Rafal Blechacz b) Yundi Li, or c)Yulianna Avdeeva?
2. Jerzy Skolimowski’s
Essential Killing won the special jury prize this year at which festival? Was it at a) Berlin b) Venice, or c) Cannes?
3. A new book recounted the exploits of a Nigerian jazz musician who fought in the WW II Warsaw Rising. Was his name a) August Agbola O’Brian b) August Agbola O’ Brown, or c) August Agbola O’Leary?
4. Poland has been celebrating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin. But where was he born? Was it in a) Warsaw b) Żelazowa Wola, or c) Paris?
Now check your answers here.The quiz was compiled by thenews.pl’s editor Peter Gentle with assistant editor John Beauchamp. We wish you a great New Year and a prosperous 2011.