Liu Xiang, a 21year old Chinese athlete, got the gold medal of the fascinating men’s 110m hurdles(跨栏)before a crowd of 70 000 at the Olympic Stadium in the 28th Olympics in Athens late Friday local time.He clocked an excellent 12.91 seconds to equal the world record set by Britain’s Collin Jackson in 1993.
It is the first gold Chinese men’s athlete has ever won from the track and field in the Olympics history.China has won over 100 gold medals from the Summer Olympic Games since 1984 but its male athletes only got one medal from Olympics’ most popular sport.
The Shanghai native, with his father a truck driver and mother an out of work housewife, loved sports when he was very little.Liu was selected to the Junior Sports School of Putuo District of Shanghai to practise jumping as a fourth grader in the primary school.But after a bone test showing that he will not be able to become a tall man, Liu was asked to give up sports one year later, although he had won the national champion at that level.
In 1998 when he attracted coach Sun Haiping’s attention as a 15yearold jumper.Sun was a well-known hurdle coach and he believed a star was born at the first sight of Liu.He visited Liu’s parents several times and finally persuaded them to let Liu transfer to the 110m hurdles.
After only three years, Liu launched his career in style in the IAAF Grand Prix in Lausanne in 2001 by breaking the world youth and Asian record with a time of 13.12 seconds.
But the first warning he sent to the world was his bronze-winning feat(战绩)at the world indoor championships in Birmingham, England, last year.
In 2004, Liu won the silver in the world indoor championships in Budapest in March.Two months later, he proved the winner in a race against American great Allen Johnson in the IAAF Grand Prix in Osaka, Japan, where he clocked a new Asian record and world’s season best time of 13.06 seconds.
He went on to win two Johnson?absent races in Lille, France, on June 26 and Zagreb, Croatia, three days later.He put up an exciting show at the Golden Gala meet in Rome on July 3, when he and Johnson clocked an identical time of 13.11 seconds.Race officials had to examine a photo finish to declare Johnson the winner.Liu did a better job of clearing the hurdles than Johnson, but Johnson’s stronger start ended up making the difference.The race boosted(提高)Liu’s optimism for the Olympics, although Johnson bettered his season best time by 0.01 second in Lausanne, Switzerland, on July 6.
The world has put the Olympics a Johnson-Liu duel but surprisingly Johnson crashed out of the Games after falling at the ninth hurdle at round 2.Johnson’s early exit paved the way for Liu’s win.He finally took the gold medal and put a Chinese man’s name on the record book.
MIANYANG-At a corner of the city's Jiuzhou Stadium, one of the biggest camps set up for those left homeless in the earthquake, 62-year-old Liu Yaorong was leaning against a window on Thursday.
Pointing to a quilt and clothes he received from the local government, he said:“These are all I have.My home collapsed in the quake, and everything in the town was flooded.”
He used to live in Xuanping town of Beichuan county which was destroyed by the quake.Adding to his misery, rivers blocked by landslides(山崩)led to flooding in the town.
But Liu said he was lucky because he was healthy, otherwise he would not have the energy to walk 10 hours on damaged and dangerous mountainous roads to escape the flood on Monday.He said the trip used to take him about 90 minutes when the roads were in good condition.
The journey was difficult and“rocks kept falling,”he said, showing injured legs and black, split toenails.
Liu said his three sons were working in eastern cities as migrant workers.
“I've been living alone in the mountains for more than 20 years.My wife died 30 years ago,” he said in a low voice.
During his journey to Mianyang, Liu said he saw many elderly people who chose to stay.
“Soldiers were persuading them to leave for fear of floods,”he said.
Talking about his home before the quake struck, Liu's mood lifted.“I raised pigs and chickens, and grew vegetables.I could have rice, meat and greens almost every day,”he said.
“But now, I have only biscuits and instant noodles.”
Liu said one of his sons returned home from Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, after the quake, but left because the father refused to go with him.
“I don't want to leave home.And I know it is difficult for them out there.How could I add to their burden?”he asked, his eyes red.
“I still want to go back to my home.Given a small piece of land, I could live by myself.”
It is learnt that resettlement plans for displaced people have not been finalized.
However, not every elderly person is as strong-willed as Liu.
Psychologists said the elderly need as much comfort as children.Lu Jianguo, a psychologist from Chengdu Medical College, said“We will first let them cry and tell their stories, and then help them regain confidence.”
(1)
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
[ ]
A.
Liu Yaorong spent 8.5 hours more than usual covering the roads in escaping the flood.
B.
The flood was followed by an earthquake in Xuanping in the same day.
C.
Liu Yaorong was in time to escape the quake without being hurt.
D.
Being healthy, Liu Yaorong was the only old man to escape the flood.
(2)
The underlined word“misery”in the third paragraph most probably means“________”.
[ ]
A.
happiness
B.
fortune
C.
puzzle
D.
suffering
(3)
What's Liu Yaorong's attitude towards self-relief after the earthquake?
[ ]
A.
Positive.
B.
Negative.
C.
Aggressive.
D.
Dependent.
(4)
What would be the best title for the news report?
[ ]
A.
Elderly react more quickly to flood disaster
B.
Elderly try hard to deal with quake disaster
C.
Elderly prefer to stay at their own home
D.
Elderly are well cared for by government
阅读理解
This is the VOA Special English News Report.
Single-handed
Zhou Yang, 18, China
Against three strong Republic of Korea competitors, Zhou single-handed took the 1,500-meter short speed skating gold to become Chinas' youngest winter Olympics gold medallist.According to coach Li Yan, Zhou, who is usually a gentle girl, took some risks and skated fiercely to take the gold.This is the third gold the Chinese have won at the Vancouver Olympics.
Unobtrusive
Liu Xiang, 26, China
The Olympic gold medallist said on Friday that he's not the same old him, after setting his worst record in years-8.08 seconds for 60-meter hurdles.Liu said he still had some way to go before he's back to his best.Many fans have been expecting his taking-off in the 2010 Doha, but Liu said unobtrusively“Robles is still the best in the 60-meter and 110-meter hurdles.I'm no match now”.He added the performances of Terrence Trammell(US)and Robles would be the highlight of the Doha meet.
Coveted
Michael Jackson, 1958-2009, US
Thanks to a whopping(庞大的)$ 350,000 bid, Michael Jackson's rhinestone-encrusted(镶满人造钻石的)glove has gone to a Macao company.Jackson wore the sparking glove when he did his first“moonwalk”dance in 1983, so it was a really coveted piece of equipment.The pre-auction estimate put its value at $ 40, 000-60,000, but that wasn't even close.The glove and nine other items from the auction will be on display in a Macao hotel.
(1)
From the first news we can learn that Zhou Yang ________.
[ ]
A.
likes taking chances in the competitions.
B.
won three gold medals at the Olympics.
C.
is not a gentle but a fleece girl
D.
is a hard working and strong minded girl
(2)
From the above news we can infer Liu Xiang ________
[ ]
A.
is not popular any more with fans
B.
is still out of condition at present
C.
is feeling discouraged and depressed
D.
is sure of the highlight of the Doha meet
(3)
The underlined part“but that wasn't even close”probably means ________.
[ ]
A.
the pre-auction estimate may be totally wrong
B.
the actual price may be far higher than the estimate
C.
the actual price may be far lower than the estimate
D.
the pre-auction estimate is probably correct
(4)
Where can we probably learn the passage?
[ ]
A.
Broadcast
B.
Announcement
C.
Advertisement
D.
Newspaper
阅读理解
●A swimming coach from Moldova is looking for a job in Beijing.Qualifications as:Coach/Judge at National Standard; Olympian(Ranking 12th in the world in 1995), World Cup Silver Medalist.Experienced children’s coach at all levels; Qualified driver(B, C, D, E categories); Bodybuilding instructor; Fluent in Russian, English, French, Ukrainian.
Contact Max Cazmirciuc at:13126711168 or email:mcazmirciuc@yahoo.com
●A retired president and CEO of two Canadian companies, interested in teaching English or French in China.
●Web design graduates are available.For details visit:www.inhb.com, or call Liu or Tang at:0311-3160000.Email:luogq@beinfo.net
●Female Beijinger, 39, has a decade’s experience in import-export business, human resources management, interpretation and secretarial work.I have a good command of computer skills and am good at English, both writing and speaking.
Mobile:13611163663
●Laid-off workers are providing PC maintenance services such as system upgrade, virus detection and removal, data copying and recovering, system utilization and security.
Call:67327317
(1)
The purpose of the advertisements is to ________.
[ ]
A.
teach at a school
B.
start a business
C.
seek employment
D.
work as web designers
(2)
We can learn from the advertisements that ________.
[ ]
A.
some foreigners are interested in working in China
B.
it’s not easy for web design graduates to get a job
C.
female Beijingers would like to advertise in a newspaper
D.
all the laid-off workers have applied for a job in a newspaper
(3)
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?
[ ]
A.
A retired CEO would like to teach in China.
B.
A bodybuilding instructor has to speak 4 foreign languages.
C.
A Beijinger has rich experience in human resource management.
D.
If a company wants a web designer it can call at 0311-3160000.