English for the Games Readers Level 2. Heroes. (CEFR A2 3,000 words) By Barry Tomalin, British Council.

Transcription

1 English for the Games Readers Level 2 Heroes (CEFR A2 3,000 words) By Barry Tomalin, British Council

2 Acknowledgements Programme manager Michael Houten, British Council Project manager Paul Sweeney Series editors Suzanne Guerrero and Mandy Loader Section 19 Andrew Longmore, Style, The Sunday Times All images British Council ii English for the Games Readers Level 2

3 Contents Before you start Stockholm, 1912 Jim Thorpe Paris, 1924 Eric Liddell St Moritz, 1928 Sonja Henie Los Angeles, 1932 Yasuji Miyazaki, Masaji Kiyokawa and Kusuo Kitamura Los Angeles, 1932 Babe Didrikson Berlin, 1936 Jesse Owens Helsinki, 1952 Adhemar da Silva Helsinki, 1952 Emil Zatopek Helsinki, 1952 Lis Hartel Mexico City, 1968 Bob Beamon Mexico City, 1968 Dick Fosbury Montreal, 1976 Nadia Comeneci Moscow, 1980 Yuriy Sedykh Calgary, 1988 Michael Eddie the Eagle Edwards Barcelona, 1992 Elana Meyer and Derartu Tulu Atlanta, 1996 Haile Gebrselassie Sydney, 2000 Steve Redgrave Athens, 2004 Tanni Grey-Thompson Beijing, 2008 Oscar Pistorius Beijing, 2008 Usain Bolt Activities Answers Sports/events reference...18 Irregular verbs Vocabulary English for the Games Readers Level 2 1

4 Gold medal Silver medal Bronze medal Podium 2 English for the Games Readers Level 2

5 Before you start Find the information and write the names and chapters of the athlete. 1. the fastest man on earth 2. a perfect ten 3. the blade runner 4. Eddie the Eagle 5. We did it for Africa 6. triple jumper 7. figure skater 8. horse rider 9. five consecutive gold medals 10. wheelchair athlete Find the answers on page 17! English for the Games Readers Level 2 3

6 1. stockholm, 1912 Jim Thorpe, USA, athlete Jim Thorpe Jim Thorpe was an American athlete of Native American descent. He was a runner. He competed in the Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden in He won two gold medals, one in the pentathlon and one in the decathlon. King Gustav V of Sweden gave Jim Thorpe the gold medals. He said that Jim Thorpe was the greatest athlete in the world. However, there was a problem. Jim Thorpe wasn t an amateur athlete. Before the Stockholm Olympics, Jim played baseball for $25 a week. He didn t play because he wanted money. He played because he loved baseball. However, the Olympic Committee took away his gold medals. Jim Thorpe didn t give up sports after that. He continued to play baseball and football. He died in In 1982, the Olympic Committee decided to return Jim Thorpe s medals and put his name back in the record books. 2. Paris, 1924 Eric Liddell, GB, athlete Eric Liddell Eric Liddell was the son of Scottish missionaries. He was born in China. He studied science and he participated in many sports. Some people called him the fastest runner in Scotland. In the Paris Olympics, Liddell planned to participate in the 100 metre race. It was his best event, but he discovered that the race was on a Sunday. He was a Christian and he wanted to go to church on Sunday. He decided not to run in the 100 metre race. He decided to run in the 400 metre race because it took place on a different day. Eric ran very fast and he won the gold medal. Later, Eric Liddell returned to Asia. He was a Christian missionary. Sometimes he ran in races there. He died in In 1981, David Puttnam made a film about Eric Liddell. Its title was Chariots of Fire. It won four Academy Awards (Oscars). 4 English for the Games Readers Level 2

7 3. st Moritz Winter Olympics, 1928 Sonja Henie, Norway, figure skater Sonja Henie Sonja Henie was a Norwegian figure skater. She was born in Oslo and she started ice skating when she was six years old. She also took ballet classes. When she was 11 years old, she competed in the 1924 Winter Olympic Games in Switzerland. She didn t do very well, but she continued to practise and perform in Norway. She won many competitions. In the 1928 Winter Olympic Games in St Moritz Switzerland, Sonja Henie won the gold medal for skating. She was wonderful. People said she was like a ballet dancer on the ice. They called her the ice queen. Sonja Henie was the first Olympic skater to use dance in her routine. Henie won the gold medal again in Lake Placid, USA in 1932 and in Garmisch- Partenkirchen in After that, she moved to Hollywood and became a film star. She died in In 1976, she was inducted into the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame. She also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 4. Los Angeles, 1932 Yasuji Miyazaki, Masaji Kiyokawa and Kusuo Kitamura, Japan, swimmers The Japanese swim team won four titles in the 1932 Olympic swimming competitions. Kusuo Kitamura won the 1,500 metres swimming race and he was only 14 years old! His teammates, Yasuji Miyazaki and Masaji Kiyokawa were also very young. Yasuji Miyazaki was 17 years old. He won two gold medals in freestyle swimming events. Masaji Kiyokawa was only 16 years old. He won a gold medal in the 100 metre backstroke event. Later he became a successful businessman, but he didn t forget his Olympic dreams. In 1979, he became the Vice Chairman of the International Olympic Committee. English for the Games Readers Level 2 5

8 5. Los Angeles, 1932 Babe Didrikson, USA, hurdler and javelin thrower Babe Didrikson Babe Didrikson came from a large family in Texas. As a child, she was very good at sports, but she wasn t good at school. She didn t finish high school. She was an expert diver. She was very good at bowling and roller-skating. She played basketball for the Golden Cyclones, an amateur team in Dallas, Texas. In the 1932 Olympic Games, Babe Didrikson won two gold medals, in the hurdles and the javelin events. She won a silver medal in the high jump. One time a newspaper reporter asked Didrikson, Is there anything you don t play? Yes, she replied. Dolls! 6. Berlin, 1936 Jesse Owens, USA, sprinter and long jumper Jesse Owens Jesse Owens is a famous Olympic hero. He was a black American athlete from Alabama. He was the grandson of a slave. He was a runner and a jumper. Jesse Owens real name was James Clements Owens, but people called him J.C. His teacher at school didn t understand his nickname. She thought his name was Jesse, so J.C. Owens became Jesse Owens. Jesse Owens competed in the Berlin Olympics in Adolf Hitler was the leader of Nazi Germany. He wanted to show that Nazi athletes were better than other athletes. However, Jesse Owens, an African-American, won four gold medals. He won a gold medal in the 100 metres, the 200 metres, the long jump and the 400 metre relay. In each event, he broke the world record! 6 English for the Games Readers Level 2

9 7. Helsinki, 1952 Adhemar da Silva, Brazil, triple jumper BRASIL 26 Adhemar da Silva Adhemar Ferreira da Silva was born in Sao Paulo. His family was very poor, but he was a very good athlete. He was part of the Brazilian team in London in 1948 and in Helsinki in In both years, he competed in the triple jump. In the triple jump, an athlete jumps three times before he/she lands in the sand. In 1952, da Silva won the gold medal for the triple jump. Later, he won the gold medal again in the Melbourne Olympics in He is the only Brazilian athlete with gold medals from two consecutive Olympic Games. In total, he won more than 40 athletic championships and trophies. He was also an actor in Orfeo Negro (Black Orpheus), an Academy Award-winning film by Marcel Camus. He died in Helsinki, 1952 Emil Zatopek, Czechoslovakia, long distance runner Emil Zatopek was born in Czechoslovakia in He was a factory worker. His factory had a sports coach. One day, the sports coach made Zatopek run a race. It was a big surprise that he almost won the race. He became interested in running and soon he was a popular athlete. During World War II, he was a captain in the Czech army. After the war, he continued running races. In the 1952 Olympics, he won three gold medals: in the 5,000 metres, the 10,000 metre race and the marathon. A few minutes after Emil Zatopek won the 5,000 metre race, his wife Dana won the gold medal in the javelin! Zatopek was very intelligent and hardworking. He spoke five languages and he ran 40 kilometres every day. When he ran, he made a lot of noise. People called him the beast of Prague. English for the Games Readers Level 2 7

10 9. Helsinki, 1952 Lis Hartel, Denmark, horse rider Lis Hartel dressage In 1952, at the Helsinki Olympic Games, Lis Hartel won a silver medal for horse riding. She was Danish. Lis Hartel s sport was called dressage. She was Danish dressage champion in 1943 and 1944, but later she got polio. She couldn t walk for a long time. She learned to walk again and she learned to ride again, too. She could not walk easily but she could ride a horse. In 1947, she competed in Danish competitions and in 1952 she went to Helsinki for the Olympic Games. This was not the Paralympic Games. It was the Summer Olympic Games. Lis Hartel competed against able-bodied athletes. She won her medal eight years before the first Paralympic Games began in Rome in The gold medal winner, Henri Saint Cyr, helped Lis Hartel walk to the podium to get her medal. 10. mexico City, 1968 Bob Beamon, USA, long jumper Bob Beamon was born in He grew up in a difficult situation. His mother died when he was a baby. He didn t know his father. He lived with his stepfather. His stepfather was violent and drank a lot of alcohol. When his stepfather went to prison, Bob lived with his grandmother. He had many behavioural problems: he stole things and fought other kids. He almost went to prison, but a special school accepted him. Bob changed. He started practising sport. He was very good at athletics. In the 1968 Olympics, Beamon competed in long jumping. His jump was 29 feet 2.5 inches (8.90 metres). It broke the world record by nearly two feet. It was an amazing moment in sport history. After that, Bob was very successful. He played professional basketball, graduated from university and became a successful businessman. 8 English for the Games Readers Level 2

11 11. mexico City, 1968 Dick Fosbury, USA, high jumper In the 1968 Olympics, Dick Fosbury also made history. He won a gold medal in the high jump event and he set a new world record. Most importantly, he invented a technique called the Fosbury Flop. He jumped over the bar and landed on his back. Other athletes tried to land on their feet. They didn t jump as high as Fosbury. Now, most Olympic athletes use the Fosbury Flop. The Fosbury Flop 12. montreal, 1976 Nadia Comeneci, Romania, gymnast Nadia Comeneci was born in Onesti in Romania. Her mother watched a Russian film. The actor s name was Nadezhda. It means hope in Russian. Her mother decided to call her daughter Nadia. As a child, Nadia trained at an experimental special school for gymnasts. She won many national competitions. In 1976, she competed in the Montreal Olympics. She was only 14 years old! (Now you must be at least 16.) She got a perfect ten! That is the highest possible score. She also won three gold medals. Later, in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, she won two more gold medals. Nadia Comeneci retired in 1981 but she still helps athletes. She is a member of the Olympic Order. She is also a member of the International Gymnasts Hall of Fame. English for the Games Readers Level 2 9

12 13. moscow, 1980 Yuriy Sedykh, USSR, athlete Yuriy Sedykh Yuriy Sedykh was born in 1955 in the Ukraine (formerly the Soviet Union). He competed in the hammer throwing event at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. He threw the hammer metres. In the competition, he broke the world record four times. He won the gold medal. His other team members won the silver and bronze medals for the hammer throwing event. Sedykh s wife Lyudmila Kondratyeva also won a gold medal in the Moscow Olympics. She competed in the 100 metre race. Yuriy Sedykh broke the world record again in a 1986 competition in Stuttgart. He threw the hammer metres. After 25 years, no one has beat this Yuriy Sedykh record! 14. calgary Winter Olympics, 1988 Michael Edwards, GB, ski jumper Eddie the Eagle Michael Edwards nickname is Eddie the Eagle. He was a ski jumper. He came from the UK. He wasn t a champion. In fact, he wasn t a very good ski jumper. He came last in all the events. But he was very interesting. He only started ski jumping two years before the Winter Olympics. When he jumped, he was fine. But when he landed, that was a problem. He landed badly. He almost fell over. But he reached the finishing line. Eddie the Eagle didn t win any gold medals, or any silver medals or even any bronze medals. But everybody loved him. Why did they call him Eddie the Eagle? He flew like an eagle, but he landed like a duck! 10 English for the Games Readers Level 2

13 15. Barcelona, 1992 Elana Meyer, South Africa and Derartu Tulu, Ethiopia, long distance runners For nearly 30 years, from 1962 to 1990, South Africa didn t participate in the Olympic Games. Why? Because of apartheid. Apartheid was a government policy that separated people of different races. The South African government only wanted to send athletes of European background to the Olympics. In the 1960s, the United Nations made an anti-apartheid rule. They wanted people of all races to have equality. South Africa was not allowed to participate in the Olympic Games. After many years, South Africa changed its system of apartheid. Now South African athletes of all races could go to the Olympics. Elana Meyer was a South African long distance runner. She was running the 10,000 metre race. She was in the lead, but at the end of the race, Ethiopian athlete Derartu Tulu passed her and won the race. Derartu did something unusual. She waited for Elana Meyer to complete the race. Then they ran a victory lap together. Elana Meyer said, It was a very special moment. We did it for Africa. The continent needed two really good women runners. It was necessary to do this for all my country. 16. Atlanta, 1996 Haile Gebrselassie, Ethiopia, long distance runner Haile Gebrselassie Haile Gebrselassie was born on a farm in Ethiopia. As a child, he lived very far from his school. He ran 16 kilometres to school every day. Then he ran 16 kilometres to his home. He carried his school books in his left arm. He still bends his left arm when he runs. Haile s greatest moment was Atlanta in He won the 10,000 metre race and he won the gold medal. In 1999 they made a film about Haile Gebrselassie and the Atlanta Olympics. They called it Endurance. He played himself in the film. In the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Haile Gebrselassie won the gold medal again. He didn t run in the Beijing Olympics because of health reasons. Haile Gebrsellassie has broken many world records. In total, he broke 61 Ethiopian records and he set 27 world records. He still runs marathons and races all over the world. English for the Games Readers Level 2 11

14 17. sydney, 2000 Steve Redgrave, GB, rowing Steve Redgrave was born in England in He started rowing when he was in school. He s very tall at 1.95 metres. He has many health problems, including diabetes. But that doesn t stop him. In the Sydney Olympics, he won his fifth consecutive gold medal in rowing. He also won a bronze medal in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. He retired after the Sydney Olympics. In 2001, Redgrave was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. Now he is Sir Steve Redgrave CBE. He continues to be active in sport as a marathon runner and he raises money for charities. He also enjoys golf and winter sports. In 2011, his daughter Natalie helped Oxford to beat Cambridge in a rowing race. He has written several books and he works as a motivational speaker. He is also the 2012 Sports Legacy Champion. He works to promote sport in schools. 18. Athens, 2004 Tanni Grey-Thompson, GB, wheelchair athlete Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson Tanni Grey-Thompson was born in 1969 in Wales. She has spina bifida. That makes it difficult for her to stand and to walk. Tanni Grey-Thompson became a wheelchair athlete. She competed in paralympic wheelchair basketball and wheelchair races. In Seoul in 1988 she won a bronze medal. In the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, she competed in a wheelchair in the 100 metre and the 400 metre events. She won a gold medal in both races. In her career she has won 16 medals (11 gold medals, four silver medals and one bronze medal). She has also won the London Marathon wheelchair race six times between 1992 and She has won many awards, honorary degrees and titles. 12 English for the Games Readers Level 2

15 19. Beijing, 2008 Oscar Pistorius, South Africa, Paralympics athlete Oscar Pistorius Oscar Pistorius is a South African runner. But he has no legs. Doctors amputated both his legs below the knee when he was 11 months old. This didn t stop Oscar Pistorius. He played rugby, water polo and tennis at school. After a rugby injury, he began running. He says, he never looked back. Pistorius learned to run on special carbon fibre legs. That s why they call him the blade runner or the fastest man on no legs. His first Olympic Games was the Paralympics in Athens in He won the gold medal in the 100 metres. He also broke the world record in a time of seconds. He also beat two American runners who had only a single amputation. In the Beijing Paralympic Games in 2008, he won three gold medals in three events and broke more world records. He said it was, a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life. 20. Beijing, 2008 Usain Bolt, Jamaica, sprinter Usain Bolt is from Jamaica, an island nation in the Caribbean Sea. He was born in As a child, he loved sport. He played cricket and football. He started running and winning races in primary school. In the Beijing Olympics, Usain Bolt competed in the 100 metre, 200 metre and 100 metre relay races. He won three gold medals and he broke three world records! People call him the fastest man on earth. One of the problems of the 100 and 200 metres is drugs. Many athletes take drugs to run faster. Some Usain Bolt athletes lost their medals because they won with the help of drugs. Usain Bolt didn t use drugs to make him run faster. What s his secret? He is relaxed. Running is easy for me, he says. Training. That s the hard part. I go to the gym. I do work-outs. I do trackwork. Then I do what I learn. English for the Games Readers Level 2 13

16 Activities 1. Read and complete the sentences using the words in the box. able-bodied amateur champion score technique wheelchair lap missionary 1. Eric Liddell returned to Asia as a. 2. Oscar Pistorius says he can run as fast as athletes. 3. A perfect ten is the best possible in gymnastics. 4. Jim Thorpe received money to play on a professional baseball team, so he was not officially an. 5. Sonja Henie was Norway s national skating. 6. Tanni Grey-Thompson won a gold medal in the race in Athens in Dick Fosbury started a new in the high jump. They call it the Fosbury Flop. 8. At the Barcelona Olympics, African Olympians Elana Meyer and Derartu Tulu ran a victory together. 14 English for the Games Readers Level 2

17 2. Write the correct form of the verb in parentheses. 1. In 2008, Usain Bolt (break) three world records. 2. In 1952, Lis Hartel (compete) in the dressage event. 3. In 1956, Adhemar da Silva (win) a second gold medal in the triple jump. His first (be) in Helsinki in In 1968, Bob Beamon and Dick Fosbury (set) new world records in the long jump and high jump. 5. Who (win) the gold medal in the Beijing Paralympics? Oscar Pistorius. 6. Nadia Comeneci (get) a perfect ten in the gymnastics event in The Olympic Committee (take) Jim Thorpe s medals because he (not be) an amateur. 8. In 1980, Yuriy Sedykh (throw) the hammer metres. 3. write a paragraph about your Olympic hero! Answer these questions: 1. What is his or her name? 2. Where does he or she come from? 3. What is his or her sport? 4. What Olympic Games did he or she compete in? 5. What medals did he or she win? 6. What does he or she do now? English for the Games Readers Level 2 15

18 4. take an Olympic Hero Quiz! Read the description and write the name of the athlete. 1. She won gold medals for skating. She became a Hollywood star. 2. He won the 1,500m swimming race at the age of fourteen! 3. He ran to school as a child. 4. She was born with spina bifida. 5. He broke three world records in the Beijing Olympics. 6. This athlete almost went to prison. 7. He ran 40 kilometres a day. 8. He was a hero of the 1936 Berlin Olympics. 16 English for the Games Readers Level 2

19 Answers Before you start (page 3) Find the information and write the names and chapters of the athlete. 1. Usain Bolt (20); 2. Nadia Comeneci (12); 3. Oscar Pistorius (19); 4. Michael Edwards (14); 5. Elana Meyer and Derartu Tulu (15); 6. Adhemar da Silva (7); 7. Sonja Henie (3); 8. Lis Hartel (9); 9. Steve Redgrave (17); 10. Tanni Grey-Thompson (18) Activities (page 14) 1. Read and complete the sentences using the words in the box. 1. missionary; 2. able-bodied; 3. score; 4. amateur; 5. champion; 6. wheelchair; 7. technique; 8. lap 2. Write the correct form of the verb in parentheses. 1. broke; 2. competed; 3. won/was; 4. set; 5. won; 6. got; 7. took/wasn t; 8. threw 4. Read the description and write the name of the athlete. 1. Sonja Henie; 2. Kusuo Kitamura; 3. Haile Gebrselassie; 4. Tanni Grey-Thompson; 5. Usain Bolt; 6. Bob Beamon; 7. Emil Zatopek; 8. Jesse Owens English for the Games Readers Level 2 17

20 Sports/events reference Sport/event Sportsman/sportswoman 100m 100m sprinter 200m 200m sprinter 800m middle distance runner 1,500m middle distance runner 5,000m long distance runner athletics athlete backstroke swimmer baseball baseball player decathlon decathlete dressage horseman/horsewoman/horse rider figure skating figure skater freestyle swimming race swimmer gymnastics gymnast hammer throw hammer thrower high jump high jumper hurdles hurdler ice skating ice skater javelin javelin thrower judo judoka long jump long jumper marathon marathon runner pentathlon pentathlete relay race relay runner ski jumping ski jumper triple jump triple jumper wheelchair race wheelchair racer/wheelchair athlete 18 English for the Games Readers Level 2

21 Irregular verbs Present tense Past tense become became lose lost break broke make made can could ride rode do did run ran fall fell set set fight fought take took go went throw threw hit hit win won is/are was/were write wrote leave left Vocabulary able-bodied actor/actress amateur apartheid athlete ballet dancer bronze medal champion church doll dressage drugs strong and healthy, without a disability a person in a film or theatre play a person who doesn t receive money for doing sport a South African policy that separated people by race a person that does sport a person who dances in a ballet medal for the third place the best person in a competition a place of worship in the Christian religion a children s toy, often in the form of a baby a competition where horses dance illegal substances that change athletic performance English for the Games Readers Level 2 19

22 Vocabulary (continued) event film star flag gold medal hope missionary noise polio score silver medal slave spina bifida team technique to amputate to break (a record) to land to lose to set (a record) to train an Olympic competition a famous actor/actress in films a piece of cloth that represents a country or organisation medal for the first place a feeling that something good will happen a person who educates others about their religion a loud sound an illness that can cause paralysis the number of points in a competition medal for the second place a person who belongs to another person an illness of the spine a group that work together in a sport a way of doing something to cut off a leg or arm in a hospital to be better than previous competitors in history to return to the ground to have something and then not have it to be the best in history to practise for a competition 20 English for the Games Readers Level 2

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24 English for the Games Readers Level 2 Heroes (CEFR A2 3,000 words) By Barry Tomalin, British Council Read all about heroes of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Games. Twenty short texts about heroic achievements from Jim Thorpe in the 1912 Stockholm Games to Oscar Pistorius and Usain Bolt in the Beijing 2008 Games. British Council 2012 Brand and Design / B484 The British Council creates international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and builds trust between them worldwide. A registered charity: (England and Wales) SC (Scotland).