2 . Anyone who’s lived through middle school knows those years can be particularly challenging. Some researches show youths across the U.S. are struggling with mental health. The physical health benefits of bike riding have been well-documented. Wilson, a researcher at Loma Linda University School of Medicine, and his co-authors carried out a new study to see if taking part in a cycling program could result in measurable changes in mind for teenagers.

The study involved more than 1,200 students, ages 11 to 14. Students participated in a cycling class for at least three days a week, for a period of 6 weeks. They learned cycling safety and practicing skills outdoors while raising their heart rate and just having fun. The students completed standardized questionnaires before and after the program designed to measure their health.

“We know cycling can benefit the body. Our research shows how it benefits the mind and social relationships as well. Bike riding can be an ideal activity for adolescents because of the benefits it offers,” said Wilson.

“Cycling engages several parts of brain function. You are looking at your hearing, you’re balancing, you’re navigating and turning. Oftentimes, you’re doing it with someone else, so there’s the positive effect of company or group activity,” said Allan Reiss, a professor at Stanford University School of Medicine.

While exercise has powerful mental health benefits, it’s not universal. For example, previous research has shown that teenage girls are at higher risk of mental health problems like depression and anxiety than boys. The current study found that, while middle school girls reported increased well-being after participating in the cycling program, that increase “may just reach the kind of baseline level for male students,” Wilson said. And other aspects of healthy living are also important, noted Wilson. The study found that teenagers who didn’t limit screen time to a maximum of two hours a day, or who got less than the recommended 8.5 hours of sleep, saw less improvement in their well-being, he said.

4 . Trainers and parents saw children play sports at a young age and then saw them become professional. Many correlated the training to success. Competitive sports are good for young children because they teach children life skills, provide health benefits, and offer special opportunities.

To begin with, sports teach children life skills. A formal athlete stated, “I played soccer in high school and college and found team sports weren’t just about winning, but also about developing a solid ethic(行为准则), and learning why that’s important.” In short, playing highly competitive sports teaches kids many life skills like teamwork. People will have to use teamwork for the rest of their life, and sports can help them improve that skill. Taking part in sports can help develop a positive attitude towards life, which will help in the long run.

Sports are also good for kids because they provide health benefits. It is healthier for a kid to play a sport competitively than to waste time playing video games all day. Furthermore, a research group of University of California said, “96 percent of the participants(参与者) said they enjoy their sports. They’re all loving life.” That is to say, kids playing highly competitive sports tend to enjoy life instead of doing something else like watching TV.

On the other hand, some people might argue that competitive sports are bad for young children because they are so time-consuming. However, the time spent is not “robbing” kids of their childhood, but offers unique opportunities. Athletes can get success to live their dream life by playing sports. Even though sports are time-consuming, they offer distinctive opportunities.

In conclusion, competitive sports are good for children because they can provide wholesome benefits, create new experiences, and build skills that will last a lifetime.

5 . Olympic Games organizers in France presented the 2024 Olympic torch (火炬) that will light the Summer Games in the country a year from now. In the Olympic torch tradition, many people carry the torch in turn from Greece to the current location of the Games. After it has traveled thousands of kilometers. the torch will light the Olympic cauldron (火炬台) at the Opening Ceremony of the next Olympic Games.

French designer Mathieu Lehanneur created the torch. which is 70 centimeters long and made of lightweight steel. Lehanneur said its shape is inspired by the famous Seine River, which flows through Paris. He said the torch is equal from top to bottom and all around the middle, which stands for equality between athletes. The twisting shape of the torch represents peace.

The torch was made with lightweight steel. Its lower half copies the movement of the Seine, along which the opening ceremony will take place for over 500,000 viewers.

Lehanneur said he wants the torch to represent the kind of event that Paris 2024 hopes to be. “I wanted to move away from the torch appearing as an object of conquest (征服),” Lehanneur said. He also told reporters that designing the torch was much more techn1cal than he thought it would be. “The magic is not the torch itself. but the flame” Lehanneur said.

The torch will be lit up in Olympia, Grecce on April 16, 2024, followed by a nine day torch relay before sailing across the Mediterranean Sea from Athens to Marseille on May 8. It will then pass through several important places , which include Strasbourg , the Pantheon in Paris, the Mont Saint-Michel and multiple French territories.

Tony Estanguet, the Paris 2024 chief, said the torch is “very ,very beautiful”. He also said it is “...very pure, It’s perfectly balanced in the hand.”

Recently, a poll(民意调查) finds that although almost three in four adults played sports when they     1     (be) younger, only one in four continue to play sports as adults.

But that decline in interest doesn’t stop parents from encouraging their children to make sports a part of their lives.     2     fact, almost nine in ten parents     3     middle school or high school aged children play sports say that their children benefit     4     great deal or quite a bit from playing sports.

And, while most adults no longer play sports     5     (they), the majority of parents say it is very likely or somewhat likely that their children will continue playing sports when they become adults. One in four parents also hope their children will become     6     (profession)athletes.

“Sports are an important part of a healthy community. They help children and adults maintain a fit     7     (weigh), teach acceptance and teamwork, and expand opportunity for children     8     (live) in poverty(贫困),” said a researcher. “This poll     9     (indicate) that we must continue to encourage children to play sports, but just as important, we must find ways     10     (keep)adults engaged in sports in order to maintain health and well-being.”