When was basketball invented?

Discover Canada records this in one direct sentence. The guide writes: Basketball was invented by Canadian James Naismith in 1891. The year the test wants is therefore 1891.

Three commitments in one sentence. Discover Canada commits the basketball invention to THREE specific facts: basketball was the sport invented; Canadian James Naismith was the inventor; and 1891 was the year. So basketball is one of Canada's named contributions to global sport — invented by a Canadian, in a specific year, and now played around the world.

Basketball is part of Canada's sports heritage. Discover Canada writes: "Sports have flourished as all provinces and territories have produced amateur and professional star athletes and Olympic medal winners. Basketball was invented by Canadian James Naismith in 1891. Many major league sports boast Canadian talent and in the national sport of ice hockey, Canadian teams have dominated the world." So basketball's Canadian invention sits alongside hockey (the national winter sport) as Canada's contribution to organised sport — and its inventor, James Naismith, is named directly in the source.

Canadian athletes excel internationally. Discover Canada writes: "In 1996 at the Olympic Summer Games, Donovan Bailey became a world record sprinter and double Olympic gold medallist. Chantal Petitclerc became a world champion wheelchair racer and Paralympic gold medalist. One of the greatest hockey players of all time, Wayne Gretzky, played for the Edmonton Oilers from 1979 to 1988." So Canadian athletes have built on the foundation that James Naismith and others laid — basketball is one Canadian sporting invention, hockey is the national sport, and individual Canadians have set world records and won Olympic gold. The 1891 basketball invention is therefore not just a sports trivia fact but part of Canada's broader athletic identity. When the test asks when basketball was invented, the answer is the year the source commits to: 1891.

The question is testing whether new citizens know the year basketball was invented. Discover Canada commits to one year: 1891. The right test answer matches that.

The wrong answer choices each pick a different year. The first option is too early — over a decade before James Naismith invented basketball. The second option is also too early. The fourth option is a decade too late. Only 1891 — the year named in the guide — matches.