Q&A; Carlisle's Welsh rarebit

Q. West Bromwich Albion must be sick of Stoke City after the recent 1-0 defeat by the Potters. Since beating Stoke 6-0 on 18 December 1988 at the Hawthorns, West Bromwich have failed to beat Stoke in any of the next 13 meetings. Can any other club justify the title of "The mother of all bogey teams"?

A. On 29 November 1995, Carlisle United won 2-1 at Wrexham in the Auto Windscreens Shield. This was Carlisle's first win at the Racecourse since Boxing Day 1938 and followed a sequence of 25 visits there in League and cup games with no wins and only four draws.

Any visit to the Principality seems to pose problems for Carlisle. They have won only three times in 38 trips to Wrexham and have never won in 16 visits to Cardiff. Overall Carlisle have played 65 times in Wales (Wrexham, Cardiff, Swansea, Newport and Aberdare) in League or cup matches and have been victorious on five occasions. - David Steele, Carlisle

Q. What is the heaviest weight lifted competitively?

A. The first man to clean and jerk more than three times his bodyweight was the Bulgarian Stefan Topurov, who lifted 180kg (396.75lb) in 1983. The first woman to clean and jerk more than twice her weight was Cheng Jinling, of China, who lifted in the 90kg (198lb) category at the 1988 World Championships.

In powerlifting, the first man to deadlift more than five times his bodyweight was the American Lamar Gant, who lifted 299.5kg (661lb) in 1985, when he was 59. My information may be out of date, but the greatest power lift by a woman was a squat of 285kg (628lb) by another American, Lorraine Constanzo, in Dayton, Ohio, in 1987. - Tony Kovak, Southport

Q. Has any other sporting event been abandoned on the grounds of boredom as occurred recently on the England cricket tour of South Africa?

A. An Olympics Games boxing bout, in which one of the contestants was Ingemar Johansson, the Swede who later became world champion, was, after a warning, declared a no-contest by the referee. Neither boxer had attempted to throw an aggressive punch in two rounds. Presumably, the boxers, officials and spectators were bored. - Geoff Hayman, Lytham St Annes

ANSWERS PLEASE

Q. The largest attendance at matches between Rangers and Celtic have been 92,000 at Parkhead (1938), 118,000 plus at Ibrox (1939) and 132,000 plus at Hampden (1969) (although there may have been a larger crowd at a Scottish Cup semi-final). What is the total number to have watched games and the average per game? How do figures compare with main local derby rivals in England? - George Williamson, Leeds

Q. Has an Irishman captained the Ryder Cup team and if not, why not? - Jon Naylor, Burnham

Q. Which sport has featured most in the film industry. May I suggest boxing? - Kevin Maguire, Batley

Q. The Euro 96 football tournament was recently described as "the third largest sporting event in the world" after the Olympics and the football World Cup. The Rugby World Cup was also so described. What about the athletics World Cup, the Asian Games, the Commonwealth Games? - Garvan Hickey, Reigate

If you know the answers to any of these of these questions or have a question of your own, write to: Q & A, Sports Desk, Independent on Sunday, 1 Canada Square, London E14 5DL. Fax: 0171-293 2894