Americans love sports . But this hobby sometimes has serious results—at least to the players. For example, when people play tennis, sometimes they hurt their elbow（肘部）. Also it is easy to hurt a knee in a football game. These injuries（毁伤）happen while the player is having fun, but they still hurt.

A few months ago, Kathleen Simmons, who loves playing volleyball, hurt her knee in a volleyball game. Her doctor told her that she needed a very difficult operation（手术）or she might not be able to play again. She felt very sad

Then Simmons learned about “video operation”. With the help of this new science in medicine, doctors can now repair many injuries.

 For this operation, her doctor didn’t have to open her knee. Instead he put a very small camera lens（镜头）inside her knee. The lens sent back pictures, which appeared on a television screen. As he worked, he could see the inside of her knee on the TV. With the help of the large pictures on the screen, the doctor knew exactly what to do when he was making the repairs.

 Simmons started walking five days after her operation. “My knee hurt a lot the first few days,” she said. “But I felt better very quickly.” Now, six months after her operation, Simmons can do everything she did before her injury. “It feels like a new knee,” she said. “I can even play volleyball again.”

1.Do Americans love sports?

2.What sport is Simmons interested in?

3.What did the doctor put inside Simmons’ knee?

4.What problem may people have when they play sports?

5.Can Simmons do everything like before?

For many young people sport is a popular part of school life. Being in one of the school teams and playing in matches is very important. If someone is in a team it means a lot of extra practice and often spending a Saturday or Sunday away from home, as many matches are played then.
In can also involve travelling to other towns to play against other school teams and then staying on after the match for a meal or a drink. Sometimes parents, friends or the other students will travel with the team to support their own side.
When a school team wins a match it is the whole school. It means the whole school feels proud, not only the players. It also means a school becomes famous for being good at certain sports and students from that school may end up playing for national and international teams, so that the school has some really famous names.
【小题1】 Many matches are played on _________.

Compared with other European countries, lifestyle in Italy is slower and more relaxing in its own way. Italians love to chat over a cup of coffee, go out for a walk in the middle of the day, and enjoy long lunches and dinners.

Family is important to Italians. They can’t think of spending a day without asking about their parents or children, and a weekend without a family lunch or dinner. Italians living outside their country also miss their family a lot.

  Italians like simple life. Their days start and end with a cup of coffee. A cup of coffee after every meal is a must. Italians love to spend time over a hot cup of coffee and even hotter conversation with friends. Topics are usually about family, football and politics(政治).

  Sport is a very important part in the lives of many Italians. Football is their favorite sport. There are hundreds of football clubs with top soccer teams in Italy. Also, many top players from all over the world play in Italy. Volleyball is also popular and so is rugby(橄榄球), with the top rugby team playing for the European Challenge Cup.

  Every Italian province, city, town and street has a historical(历史的) even that took place there and the Italian calendar is filled with national holidays that they love to celebrate(庆祝).

 1.We can learn from the first paragraph that ________.

     A. most European countries have slow and relaxing lifestyles

     B. the lifestyle in Italy isn’t much like that of the other countries in Europe

     C. Italians enjoy chatting over a cup of tea and long dinners

     D. Italians love to walk in the middle of the night

 2. What does the writer want to tell us in the second paragraph？

     A. Friends are very important to Europeans.

     B. Italians can’t spend a day without their parents.

C. Italians will never go to another country because they will miss their children.

D. Family is more important to Italians than any other thins.

 3. Which of the following sports is loved most by Italians?

     A. Football.            B. Basketball.         C. Volleyball.        D. Rugby.

  4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

     A. Italians love to spend national holidays, but there aren’t so many.

     B. Italians never talk about politics with their family.

     C. Italians like drinking coffee after every meal.

     D. Soccer is not very popular in Italy.

  5.What’s the passage mainly about?

A. Italian family.    B. Italian life.                   C. Italian sport.       D. Italian history.

My favourite sport is skiing. It’s __________than running.