Farflung Answers · Expedition #9 (2026-10-13)

Prompt 1 of 5

Pin a country that has hosted the Summer Olympics

Ruling note: A Games counts for every country its venues stand in today: Moscow 1980 also held events in Tallinn, Kyiv and Minsk.

Gem note: The five-ring flag first flew at a Games in Antwerp in 1920. Amsterdam lit the first Olympic flame in 1928.

22 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
France	Common	25.7%
United States	Uncommon	9.9%
Greece	Uncommon	9.4%
Japan	Uncommon	8.9%
China	Rare	5.9%
United Kingdom	Rare	5.9%
Australia	Rare	5%
Brazil	Rare	5%
Germany	Rare	4%
Spain	Rare	3.5%
Russia	Rare	3%
Italy	Rare	2.5%
South Korea	Rare	2.5%
Canada	Rare	2.2%
Mexico	Rare	2.2%
Finland	Elusive	1.5%
Sweden	Elusive	1.2%
Estonia	Elusive	0.5%
Belarus	Elusive	0.4%
Ukraine	Elusive	0.4%
Belgium	Farflung	0.3%
Netherlands	Farflung	0.3%

Prompt 2 of 5

Pin a country whose flag has a crescent

Ruling note: A crescent inside an emblem or coat of arms counts, as on Iran's and Mongolia's flags. Laos and Palau fly full moons. Western Sahara counts for the Sahrawi Republic's flag, though it is disputed ground, and Northern Cyprus for its own, as the card did not say a national flag.

Gem note: Both keep one in the coat of arms: Croatia’s under a star in the crown, Moldova’s beside an aurochs head.

21 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Türkiye	Common	41%
Pakistan	Uncommon	14.4%
Algeria	Rare	6.2%
Malaysia	Rare	6.2%
Tunisia	Rare	6.2%
Singapore	Rare	5.1%
Azerbaijan	Rare	4.1%
Libya	Rare	3.6%
Maldives	Elusive	1.5%
Mauritania	Elusive	1.5%
Nepal	Elusive	1.5%
Turkmenistan	Elusive	1.5%
Uzbekistan	Elusive	1.5%
Iran	Elusive	1.2%
Brunei	Elusive	1%
Comoros	Elusive	1%
Mongolia	Elusive	1%
Western Sahara	Elusive	0.4%
Northern Cyprus	Elusive	0.3%
Croatia	Farflung	0.3%
Moldova	Farflung	0.3%

Prompt 3 of 5

Pin a country the Mekong flows through

Ruling note: Six countries. A bank is enough: Myanmar and Thailand only ever border it.

Gem note: Myanmar holds one bank only. The Mekong is its whole border with Laos, about 240 km.

6 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Vietnam	Common	47.9%
Cambodia	Uncommon	24%
Laos	Uncommon	18%
Thailand	Rare	7.2%
China	Elusive	1.8%
Myanmar	Farflung	1.2%

Prompt 4 of 5

Pin a country whose capital starts with the same letter as its name

Ruling note: Both names as English has them today, by the short name or the official one: the Commonwealth of Australia and Canberra, the Republic of Latvia and Riga, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Islamabad, the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and Dili. With two capitals, either can match, as in Sri Lanka and Burundi. Israel is on the list only because the card didn’t say English, so pins on it for the Hebrew names keep their points.

Gem note: Colombo is the famous city, but parliament sits in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte.

35 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Mexico	Common	14.5%
Brazil	Rare	8.2%
Kuwait	Rare	8.2%
Luxembourg	Rare	7.3%
Singapore	Rare	7.3%
Panama	Rare	6.3%
Monaco	Rare	5.4%
Guatemala	Rare	4.5%
Australia	Rare	3.6%
Vatican City	Rare	3.6%
Djibouti	Rare	3.2%
San Marino	Rare	3.2%
Belgium	Rare	2.7%
Algeria	Rare	2.7%
Tunisia	Rare	2.7%
South Korea	Rare	2.3%
Sweden	Rare	2.3%
Andorra	Elusive	1.8%
Pakistan	Elusive	1.8%
Taiwan	Elusive	1.1%
Maldives	Elusive	0.9%
Latvia	Elusive	0.7%
Burundi	Elusive	0.7%
Belize	Elusive	0.7%
Barbados	Elusive	0.5%
Brunei	Elusive	0.5%
Guyana	Elusive	0.5%
Mozambique	Elusive	0.5%
Niger	Elusive	0.5%
Papua New Guinea	Elusive	0.5%
São Tomé and Príncipe	Elusive	0.5%
Israel	Elusive	0.3%
Sri Lanka	Farflung	0.3%
Timor-Leste	Elusive	0.2%
Marshall Islands	Elusive	0.2%

Prompt 5 of 5

Pin a country whose land was once part of Austria-Hungary

Ruling note: Any land it held counts, however small, like Montenegro’s coast at Kotor. A wartime occupation, as in Albania, does not.

Gem note: Austria-Hungary ran a corner of the port city of Tianjin until China declared war in August 1917.

14 accepted answers
Country	Tier	Pick share
Austria	Common	26.2%
Hungary	Common	26.2%
Czechia	Uncommon	12.6%
Slovakia	Rare	7.3%
Croatia	Rare	6.3%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Rare	5.2%
Slovenia	Rare	5.2%
Poland	Rare	3.1%
Romania	Elusive	1.9%
Ukraine	Elusive	1.9%
Italy	Elusive	1.6%
Serbia	Elusive	1.3%
China	Farflung	0.5%
Montenegro	Elusive	0.5%