Billy Joe Saunders is aiming for boxing
gold at the Beijing Olympics but may have created history already.
As far as he knows, the 18-year-old
welterweight from Hatfield is the first person from the Romany Gypsy community
to qualify for an Olympic Games.
Billy Joe clinched （最终获得）his place at a qualifying
event in Italy earlier this month and is one of seven boxers to make Team GB
for Beijing.
Billy Joe Saunders is not the only British
boxer with genuine（真的）medal prospects for Beijing, but his background has to be the most
fascinating.
He comes from the Romany Gypsy community
and lives on a caravan site near Hatfield in Hertfordshire.
Boxing runs deep in the Saunders family,
who are immensely proud of their heritage.
His brother Tommy is a professional（职业的）, while his Dad Tom was an
amateur and his great, great grandfather, the wonderfully named Absolom Beeny,
now aged 96, used to make his living fighting in the old boxing booth at
fairgrounds.
Billy Joe admits he has heard all the
stories a hundred times, but once he and his brother had visited the local
boxing club, he was hooked.
"Boxing has kept me off the streets,
stops me smoking and drinking and gives me something to do", he said.
His background may be colorful, but make no
mistake, Billy Joe Saunders is one very special boxer.
As a boy he wasn't the most naturally
gifted, but had an inner toughness that set him apart from other fighters.
His trainer, Danny Hoy, said: "When I
saw him have to dig down into his boots against much older boys, I thought this
kid is not the same as anyone else. There is something with this kid".
It is that something which made Billy Joe a
real prospect for London 2012, so qualification for Beijing means he is
effectively four years ahead of schedule.
He remembers watching Amir Khan win silver
in Athens four years ago, and wants to go one better. "I'm aiming for
gold, simple as that", he said.
51．Where did Billy clinch his place as a boxer to make Team GB for
Beijing.
A. At
Beijing
B. At Romany Gypsy community
C. In Italy
D. In Britain
52．The underlined word " amateur" (in Para. 3) here means
________
A. a person who takes part in boxing only
for pleasure
B. a person who takes part in boxing as his
job
C. a coach who teaches boxing
D. a player who takes part in baseball
53．Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Billy’s brother is a professional
boxer.
B. Absolom’s son is not a professional
boxer.
C. Billy was very interested in the local
boxing club.
D. Billy was the most naturally gifted when
he was still a very young boy.
54．It can be inferred from the passage that________
A. His coach thought Billy was gifted to be
a boxer when he saw Billy’s boots against older boys.
B. It was Boxing that has kept Billy off
the streets.
C. Billy won a silver medal in Athens
Olympic Games..
D. Billy will compete in Beijing Olympic
Games four years ahead of his trainer’s schedule.
55．What is Billy hoping to win in Beijing Olympic Games?
A. A silver medal for boxing
B. A gold medal for boxing
C. A piece of
gold
D. A copper medal
