Misc: what sport uses plugs and leaders?

Questions

In the tenth century, the Grand Vizier of ------- took his entire library with him wherever he went. The 117,000-volume library was carried by camels trained to walk in alphabetical order.?

In the winter of 1724, while on an outing at sea, --------------- of Russia caught sight of a foundering ship, jumped in the water, and helped in the rescue. He caught cold, suffered from a high fever, and died several weeks later.?

Every queen named ----- has either been murdered, imprisoned, gone mad, died young, or been dethroned.?

Every year, ------- and their guests drink 1.2 million gallons of beer during Oktoberfest. The first Oktoberfest was in 1810 and celebrated the marriage of King Ludwig I of Bavaria.?

Fighting alongside Americans and British during the ------ invasion of 1944 were 15,000 Canadians. And it was the Canadian troops who were the first to reach their planned objective.?