Question

The phrase "Great White Hope" refers to which of the following?

• A. Babe Ruth, whose home run hitting restored faith in baseball after the Black Sox scandal of 1919
• B. Boston Celtics basketball star Larry Bird
• C. The women's gymnastics team at the 1980 Olympic Games
• D. A white boxer good enough to defeat Jack Johnson, world heavyweight champion in 1908
• E. Swedish tennis champion Bjorn Borg

Answer 1

The correct option is D A white boxer good enough to defeat Jack Johnson, world heavyweight champion in 1908

The phrase Great White Hope refers to a white boxer good enough to defeat Jack Johnson, world heavyweight champion in 1908. The phrase itself came into existence almost exactly 100 years ago in the era of Jack Johnson, the great American heavyweight fighter who happened to be black.When Jack Johnson became world heavyweight champion, almost every white sports journalist in the country expressed the desire for a great white hope to come along and defeat him.