Lou Gehrig (1903-1941) was a baseball player with the New York Yankees for 17 seasons. He was a powerful hitter known as “The Iron Horse”. Gehrig was a strong, tough and very moral man. His father was often out-of-work because he was an alcoholic and his mother was a maid. His two sisters and only brother died young.As a young boy, Gehrig helped his mother with her work. However, he never let his tough start hold him back. He started playing for the Yankees in 1923 after attending Columbia University, setting many major league records during his career. This included the most consecutive games played (2130 games), a record only broken 56 years later in 1995.
Sadly, at the age of 36, he started to tire mid-season and his speed and cooperation ability faded. He resigned. Soon after he was diagnosed with a form of motor neuron disease named amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). He delivered his farewell-to-baseball speech to his teammates and fans on 4 July of the same year at the Yankee Stadium.
After his speech, the crowd stood and clapped for almost two minutes. The New York Times reported that it was “one of the most touching scenes ever witnessed on a ball field”. Gehrig died two years later of the disease. This increased awareness of the disease and its symptoms; in North America it is still commonly known as “Lou Gehrig’s disease”. The Lou Gehrig Memorial Award is given each year to the Major League Baseball player who best exhibits Gehrig’s integrity and character.
1. When did Lou Gehrig give his speech?| A．in 1903. | B．in 1923. | C．in 1939. | D．in 1940. |
| A．His family. | B．His friends. | C．His opponents. | D．His supporters. |
| A．Lou Gehrig named the disease. |
| B．This disease is related to playing baseball. |
| C．People get to know the disease due to Lou Gehrig. |
| D．The disease had never appeared before Lou Gehrig caught it. |
| A．Determined and persistent. | B．Emotional and patient. |
| C．Wealthy and humorous. | D．Gentle and generous. |
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【推荐1】Like everybody else, I was addicted to my devices. When realizing its harm, I decided to make a change.
“I’m doing Tech-Free Sundays now!” I told my mother, on the Saturday night before my no-tech journey started. “Oh,” she said. “So are you giving up, like, the wheel?” I defined my terms. No: computer, phone, iPad. No: email, Twitter, Instagram. Yes: wheels, modern medicine.
But when I woke up in the morning, I failed. The problem was my work: I needed to meet a deadline. I thought I could just use the computer for work, and wouldn’t check Twitter. And I didn’t, for many hours. And then I did. It was right there! And though I checked it very briefly, just in case anyone was mad at me, the spell(咒语) was broken.
But the beautiful thing about Sundays is that there is always another one. The next week, I changed my approach: no tech, at all. This time, I was prepared. On Saturday, I made a list of everything I wanted to accomplish over the weekend, and then worked my way through all the parts that require technology. And then I put my phone down, and when I woke up on Tech-Free Sunday, I did not pick it up again.
Instead, I finish a book—one with paper! Do you know how pleasurable it is to read a book by touching it? It is a delight, like petting a very literary cat. However, the trouble came when I went to meet a friend. I was running late, but had no way to tell her because my phone was at home.
Was I relaxed on such a Sunday? It was an unfamiliar feeling, but I was. I felt a sense of control over my life. But because life is nothing if not a learning process, the next weekend, I told everyone who might need to get in touch with me that I would not be reachable on Sunday.
1. What can we infer from the author’s conversation with her mother?| A．The author’s mother was unfamiliar with technological terms. |
| B．The author wouldn’t refuse all modern technology. |
| C．The author wouldn’t drive on Tech-Free Sundays. |
| D．The author’s mother agreed with her decision. |
| A．The author went against her original wish. | B．The author got her computer checked. |
| C．The author got annoyed by others. | D．The author broke a spell happily. |
| A．Disappointed. | B．Hesitant. | C．Satisfied. | D．Tired. |
| A．“Tech-Free Sundays” Become Popular |
| B．Being Addicted to Devices Is Harmful |
| C．I Tried Going Tech-Free on Sundays |
| D．I Realized the Harm of Devices |
【推荐2】Patrick never does homework. “Too boring,” he says. He always plays baseball and basketball after school. His teachers tell him, “Patrick! Do your homework, or you can’t learn anything.” But what can he do? He hates homework.
One day, his cat was playing with a little “doll”. He found it wasn’t a doll at all, but a man of the smallest size. The man called, “Save me! Don’t give me back to that cat. I have magic. I will help you if you save me!”
How lucky he was! Here was the answer to all of his problems. So he said, “If you help me to do my homework until the last day of school, I will get good grades.” The man agreed. He began to do Patrick’s homework. The man didn’t always know what to do and he needed help. “Help me! Help me! ”he said. And Patrick had to help. Day after day, Patrick had to work harder. Finally the last day of school arrived and the man was free to go. As for homework, Patrick didn’t hate doing it any more. Patrick got his A’s. His teachers and classmates were all surprised. Who really helped Patrick?
1. Patrick likes ________ after school.| A．doing sports | B．doing some reading |
| C．doing his homework | D．learning things |
| A．It means “Patrick got the teachers’ help”. | B．It means “Patrick got good grades”. |
| C．It means “Patrick got more friends”. | D．It means “Patrick got more problems”. |
| A．Patrick never hates doing his homework. |
| B．The man sometimes didn’t know what to do when he helped Patrick. |
| C．The man didn’t go until the last day of school. |
| D．Patrick finally started to like doing homework. |
| A．the man liked to play with the cat |
| B．the man never helped Patrick do his homework |
| C．Patrick’s classmates always helped him do his homework |
| D．in fact, Patrick helped himself |
【推荐3】Gracie Bucher desired to qualify (获得资格) for the state cross country meet as she started the section race in Luverne. As a 7th grader, she finished just two places back from qualifying for state.
Yet there she was, early in the race, her legs feeling extremely heavy. “I have to keep fighting for it,” Gracie told herself. She pushed on. But as she approached the finish line, she lost her balance and feel to the ground. She pulled herself up and then fell again.
Gracie’s mother watched it all, separated from her daughter by a rope and a row of the audience. “Extremely painful” is how Missy Kuntz describes it. Missy wanted to run to her daughter, but “I was told, ‘You can’t go out,’ and ‘You can’t touch her.’”
Under rules enforced by the Minnesota State High School League, one runner assisting another runner means disqualification for both.
Gracie continued to struggle, until a strange competitor had seen enough. Liana Blomgren, a former state qualifier from another school, saw Gracie fall. “I knew she wasn’t going to get to the finish line by herself.” Liana says. She pulled Gracie to her feet, and supported her weight as the competitors crossed the finish line together. At the end of the day, they both were disqualified.
Kyle Blomgren, Liana’s dad and coach, believes his daughter did what others should have. “I don’t think an athlete on the field in that condition should be surrounded by a group of bystanders,” Kyle says. “And it took an 18-year-old girl to step in and help.”
Due in part to previous incidents like Gracie’s, the national organization overseeing the meet recently ruled that a runner who stops to assist a competitor will not be disqualified, so long as a medical care provider is not available. Too late for Liana, but she’s already made peace with her disqualification.
1. What do we know about Gracie?| A．She cared little about success. | B．She showed great determination. |
| C．She lacked confidence in herself. | D．She set a good example of teamwork. |
| A．Gracie was going to lose the race. | B．She was deeply hurt by the audience. |
| C．She was not allowed to rescue Gracie. | D．Gracie was unwilling to accept her help. |
| A．It is praiseworthy. | B．It is abnormal. | C．It is instant. | D．It is unexpected. |
| A．Events like Gracie’s are on the rise. | B．More medical care providers are needed. |
| C．A change has been made to race rules. | D．Liana’s disqualification will be reviewed. |
【推荐1】On Aug 7, Xu Shixiao and her partner, Sun Mengya, won gold in the first women’s canoe (划艇) double 500 m event at the Tokyo Games. It was also the first Olympic gold medal for China in the event.
Yet Xu’s journey to the Olympics was bumpy — she faced lots of difficulties.
In 2013, the news that women’s canoeing was still not an Olympic event dealt her a heavy blow. At that time, Xu’s coach suggested her either changing to another sport or retiring (退役).
It was impossible for her to change the sport at age 21. Xu gave up her career and found her first job as a saleswoman. The next year, she was promoted (晋升) as a human resources manager.
When Xu went to work as usual in a company in Nanchang, Jiangxi province, five years ago, she was surprised to get a call from her former coach, asking about her willingness to return to canoeing and compete in the Tokyo Olympic Games. Xu quickly made her decision.
“I quit my job, told my family about it and went back to training three days later. There was not much time left for me to prepare for the Olympics, “Xu recalls.” I never thought that one day I could go back to the sport. Now that I have started again, I will do my best.”
To catch the opportunity to go back to canoeing on the international level, Xu started her training —“as cruel as hell”. She began her daily exercises early morning and ended at 10: 30 p. m. Every day, she would set several detailed goals for her training. “Only when I reached all my daily goals, I would go ashore,” Xu says.
The more than two months of grueling (艰辛的) training finally paid off. Xu won two gold medals at the 13th National Games in two women’s canoe events, which meant she would be part of the national team to compete in the Tokyo Olympics.
1. What does the underlined word “bumpy” in paragraph 2 probably mean?| A．Hard. | B．Smooth. | C．Positive. | D．Special. |
| A．She changed to another sport. | B．She started up a business. |
| C．She got promoted in her thirties. | D．She worked in a company. |
| A．Xu’s hard training. | B．Xu’s final goal. |
| C．The best time to exercise. | D．The benefits of canoeing. |
| A．Practice makes perfect. | B．Stay true to yourself. |
| C．Your hard work pays off. | D．Never too old to learn. |
【推荐2】During school life, Muhammad Tariq Khan developed an interest in playing badminton. Unfortunately, the school did not have a coach, so he had to self-learn the sport. His dedication helped him become an under 12 Pakistan Champion at the age of 10.
Coming from a working-class family, Khan had to work in a factory to earn money for his family. But driven by his passion, Khan found out ways to watch other players play matches on the badminton court and he learned various techniques used by experienced players. Meanwhile, Khan practiced badminton by hitting the shuttlecock (羽毛球) against the walls of his home. Seeing his passion for the sport, his family bought him a net, a few wooden rackets, and a pack of shuttles to practice at home. Later, Khan often practiced in an open court. To maintain strength, he went on daily morning sprints (短跑) by the riverside to be fit.
His intense practice sessions had made him so skilled that he courageously attacked and played against the top-ranked players. Soon he became a known player. Although he had a supportive family, he could not take up badminton as a full-time career. In order to help his father with finances and shoulder responsibility for his brothers and sisters, he had to switch his focus to build a long-lasting and stable career to sustain his family. After completing his degree in Bachelor of Commerce from Sindh University in 1964, he joined the Pakistan International Airlines in 1967. As an adult, he acknowledged the importance of his duties and performed them with great enthusiasm. Despite his daily office routine, Khan did not leave his passion for sports and played regularly.
The journey of Khan’s achieving his goals is indeed challenging. His family had spent their initial days in a refugee (难民) camp. Khan ever walked long distances from college to his house to avoid using public transport to save cash to buy shuttlecocks.
Today he has been recognized by many reputable Pakistani platforms for his contribution to badminton. His personality is inspirational for many young individuals, who can learn from him the art of balancing life pressures and sticking to a passion!
1. What does Paragraph 2 mainly tell us about Khan?| A．His family and working experience. | B．His dream of being a professional runner. |
| C．His experience of learning to play badminton. | D．His passion for watching badminton matches. |
| A．He left his passion for badminton. | B．He wanted new challenges. |
| C．He lost his parents’ support. | D．He had to support his family. |
| A．Stimulate readers’ deep interest. | B．Add some back ground information. |
| C．Summarize the previous paragraphs. | D．Introduce a new topic for discussion. |
| A．Responsible and determined. | B．Modest and creative. |
| C．Ambitious and adventurous. | D．Cooperative and honest. |
【推荐3】Ever since Zion Williamson was 5 years old, he wanted to be a basketball star. But to get there, he needed a lot of encouragement and coaching along the way, and there was no one that better than his mother, Sharonda Sampson. She coached Zion in every youth basketball league he ever played. Sampson was a collegiate track star and later became a middle school health and physical education teacher.
He has got up at 5:30 a.m. to head to the outdoor court and play basketball since he was 9 years old. Zion's hard work began to pay off when he entered high school, where he became a YouTube hit for his high-flying dunks （灌篮）and powerful moves. But Sampson wanted her son to not only work hard at being great but study how the legends of the game went about their skills.
“When I started playing, my mom said there were three players she wanted me to watch — Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Michael Jordan,” Williamson said. “Even though I wasn't alive when he （Jordan） was doing those things, it just attracted me. Everything he did was just incredible.”
The national spotlight shined on Zion during his one year of collegiate basketball at Duke University, where he was coached by five-time national champion Mike Krzyzewski. The most storied rivalry in the collegiate game is between Duke and North Carolina, where Jordan won a national championship back in the 1980s.
Shortly after his freshman season, Zion declared for the NBA Draft. Sampson was by her son's side when he was chosen by the Pelicans as the top player. “I wouldn't be here without my mom” said Zion with tears streaming down his face after his selection.
Zion was brilliant in the first 19 games of his regular-season NBA career, averaging over 23 points and six rebounds per game, before the coronavirus （冠状病毒）crisis forced the league to shut down. The 19-year-old Zion says he's been staying fit and will be ready to go when the league resumes.
1. What do we know about Zion from the first two paragraphs?| A．He was trained mainly by his mother. |
| B．He dreamed of being a basketball star at 9. |
| C．He was famous for his mother at YouTube. |
| D．He coached his mother in basketball leagues. |
| A．She wanted to make Zion beat them one day. |
| B．She expected Zion to learn much from them. |
| C．She required Zion to join their basketball teams. |
| D．She wished Zion to like the same players as she. |
| A．He would join the NBA with his mom |
| B．He would stand beside his mother firmly. |
| C．His success related to what his mom did. |
| D．He followed her wherever his mother went. |
| A．To encourage people to learn from Zion. |
| B．To explain why Zion likes playing basketball. |
| C．To prove Zion has a gift for playing basketball. |
| D．To introduce an NBA basketball player. |
