The Great North Run is one of the UK’S most popular sporting     1     (event). It is the biggest and best known half-marathon in the world. Around fifty-thousand competitors sign up to compete in the Great North Run every September. Around one hundred thousand friends and family members line the roads     2     (watch) the race and cheer the runners on from the sidelines.

First     3     (hold) in 1981, the Great North Run was to help raise money for charities and other worthy causes. A lot of people enjoy    4     (compete) in the half-marathon, and men and women of all ages take part     5     the race to help raise money for their favourite charity.

Running road races can be    6     (tire). So not all runners manage to go the full     7    (distant) and complete it and there are always some     8     fall by the wayside. Ambulances are kept on standby in case any runners need medical attention and     9     (bottle) water is provided at various stops along the way.     10    (usual), around two hundred and fifty thousand bottles of water are handed out during the race alone.

I used to hate running. It seemed too hard. That I had to expand my comfort zone (扩大新适区) was not something     1     I like. In fact, I wouldn’t have become a runner if it weren't for my husband Charles, whose profession was a biologist. He had been a serious competitive runner for many years. After our marriage, he wouldn’t stop talking about    2     much he missed it. So he picked it up again, and he said I could benefit from running. Running ought to     3     (practise) by me. I asked him, "Must I run every day? "He answered, "No, you needn’t. You can run three times a week.” After about a year, I started to join him at the track. Just a few weeks later, Charles signed us both up for a five-kilometer race. I said, A plan for my practice     4     (make)so far. "What I worried about was that it was too soon. I had some doubt whether I could finish it. I thought my running ability was limited.

The gun sent a signal.     5     (thousand) of runners pushed forward. There were     6     (approximate)eight thousand runners participating     7     the race. The first kilometer was difficult. I was already breathing heavily and painfully aware of the group of runners passing by me and Charles was trying to encourage me and to get me focused on something except my discomfort. I had to continue to run.

I felt so     8     (exhaust)but I tried to keep my legs going. I knew that if I actually finished this race, I would have achieved something. So, I straightened up and went on.

Finally I managed     9     (pass)through the finish line. A volunteer put a medal around my neck. I proudly held my medal, walking to the post-race celebrations with Charles. Some reporters even expressed their sincere     10    (admire) for us. My lungs and my comfort zone both expanded.

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics has left a deep     1     (impress)on people across the globe. At Beijing 2022, a total of 2,877 athletes from 91 countries and regions     2     (compete)for 109 gold medals. “Athletes competed     3     (brave)to exceed limits, setting a number of new world records and Olympic records. This is     4     vivid representation of the Olympic motto-Faster, Higher, Stronger , Together,” said Cai Qi, president of the Beijing organizing committee.

Beijing is the first city     5     (host)both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. Besides the competitions, the unique charm of Beijing and the thoughtful services which the city offered to all participants     6     (value). As the first global multi-sport event held as scheduled during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Beijing Winter Games attached great importance     7     the health and safety of all participants. “Our COVID-19 policy has been     8     (effect), setting a successful example for other major international events held during the pandemic,” Cai said.

The Beijing Games     9     theme is Together for a shared future have also left the city with rich legacies(遗产),     10     (include)engaging 346 million people in ice and snow sports as well as hosting the Games in a more sustainable way.

The postponed Tokyo Olympics are due to open from July 23 to August 8, 2021. Actually, there     1     (be) much speculation (猜测)recently about whether the Tokyo Olympics will take place as scheduled. On Jan 27, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach promised that     2     event would go ahead. "0ur task is to organize the Olympic Games and not to cancel the Olympic Games,“ he said, adding that the IOC is working day and night     3     (host) a safe event. But it’s still     4     (clear) how this will happen, with coronavirus cases increasing around the world.

Last year, the NBA finished     5     (it) 2019-2020 seasons at a campus in Disney World with strict rules to keep the virus out. It proved successful,     6     shows that it’s possible to hold a major sporting event     7     (safe) during the pandemic (流行病)，as long as proper measures are taken. But the Olympics are huge, with 11,000 athletes and another 4,400 for Paralympics. In     8     (add), tens of thousands of others are involved, including     9     (coach), judges, administrators, media and broadcasters.

Recent surveys show that about 80% of the Japanese public think the Olympics should be canceled     10     postponed again. The IOC has said they will not be postponed again and will be canceled if they can’t be held.

Games don't come with built-in rulebooks and uniforms. They develop over time from     1     (activity) that people play for fun. For example, basketball     2     (invent) to help American football players have fun and stay in shape in the cold winter months. Here is the story.

James Naismith had a problem. It was cold and snowy outside the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), in the USA,     3     he worked. Athletes on the football team were sitting around getting     4     (bore) and out of shape. Naismith was asked to think up an indoor game     5     (get) them in shape.

What would Naismith do? He went to the storeroom     6     brought up a soccer ball. Then he asked the doorman to find two boxes to fix on the walls at opposite ends of     7     (they) small gym. The doorman     8     (can) not find any boxes, so he brought up two old peach baskets. They worked just fine. The first two points in the first basketball game ever were scored by    9     overweight football player. He received a bounce pass (反弹传球)     10     (perfect) from a friend and did a jump shot with a soccer ball into a peach basket.