2 . On Oct. 11, hundreds of runners competed in a cross-country race in Minnesota. Melanie Bailey should have _________ the course earlier than she did. Her _________ came because she was carrying a _________ across the finish line.

As reported by a local newspaper, Bailey was more than two-thirds of the way through her _________ when a runner in front of her began crying in pain. She _________ to help her fellow runner, Danielle Lenoue. Bailey took her arm to see if she could walk forward with _________. She couldn’t. Bailey then _________ to let Lenoue climb onto her back and carried her all the way to the finish line, then another 300 feet to where Lenoue could get _________ attention.

Once there, Lenoue was _________ and later taken to a hospital, where she learned that she had serious injuries in one of her knees. She would have struggled with extreme __________ to make it to that aid checkpoint without Bailey’s help.

As for Bailey, she is more __________ about why her act is considered a big __________. “She was just crying. I couldn’t __________ her,” Bailey told the reporter. “I feel like I was just doing the right thing.”

Although the two young women were strangers before the __________, they’ve since become friends. Neither won the race, but the __________ of human kindness won the day.

6 . At an age where many of his contemporaries are winding down, Jo Schoonbroodt is somehow speeding up. On Sunday, the 71-year-old from the Netherlands, ran a marathon in 2hr 54min 19sec to become the fastest septuagenarian (70-90 年龄组) in history.

A few days later, when the Times catches up with him, his achievement is still sinking in. “I only started jogging at 36 because my doctor told me I had high cholesterol (胆固醇),” he says. “But last year I ran 7,242 kilometres, which is more than double what I did in my car.”

But the secrets of his success might surprise you。 “Most runners train too hard. I do a lot of my training with groups who run very slowly. And then I build on these basics with some faster interval training.”

Schoonbroodt often runs at 9-or 10-minute mile pace, far slower than the 6.38min / mile he ran for 26.2 miles to set his world record, but he says the crucial thing is that he listens to his body. “A lot of people follow a training plan or coach and push on even when their body is saying: ‘No, this is not a good day to do it.’ But if you go out the door and just do what you feel, it’s easier to keep running and stay injury-free.”

Being a late bloomer (大器晚成), he believes, has actually helped him because his ego (自我意识) never had to worry about chasing faster times of his youth. “Because I started so late, I missed my best years. But that’s no problem. Everything is still new to me.”     

Schoonbroodt, meanwhile, has no plans to put his feet up. “My next marathon is in two and a half weeks, on an old Roman road built 2,000 years ago,” he says, the excitement obvious. It will be his third in 2023. And with that he is off. After all, the quest (追求) for another sub-three-hour marathon waits for no man. Not even one who is 71.

7 . Sports play a key role in the physical and mental development of children. Although it’s great to see a child succeed in one sport, it’s important to keep their activities in balance. Participation in multiple sports enables children to acquire a knowledge of many movement skills. In addition to this, here are some other good reasons why kids should be encouraged to play several sorts of sports.

Repetitive movements can overstress growing bodies which later on can lead to injuries. With multi-sports, each sport works the body slightly differently. This will lead to fewer overuse injuries. Also, kids who overspecialize in one sport may end up losing interest and eventually give up. Specializing in a sport raises expectations and may put too much pressure on young kids. Having a variety of experiences will keep children interested and motivated, and even make them enjoy sports without any pressure.

Multi-sports also allow kids to experience different roles. Being a goalkeeper in a football team is very different from being a point guard in basketball. Being exposed to baseball develops better hand-eye coordination (协调). Soccer develops better footwork (步法). Volleyball develops jumping and hand-eye coordination. Martial arts develop strength, mobility, and discipline. Swimming develops full-body coordination and strength. The list goes on and on! Participation in multiple sports broadens a child’s developmental social, and situational experience. It opens up opportunities to become a better competitor and a promising athlete — flexible and energetic.

Many sports superstars like Stephen Curry achieved their standing today by playing multiple sports. Curry played basketball but he also played baseball, football, soccer, and everything else in a sports buffet. What worked for Curry, experts say, could work for most of us.

Besides developing a wide range of sports skills, more importantly, multi-sports provide opportunities for children to discover their liking. With the help of the right coaches, sports become fun, inspiring kids’ interests. So if you can’t decide whether your child should focus on one sport or try some different sports, I hope you can make a better decision now.

8 . The key to your dream workout routine

There was a time in my life when I hated working out.    1    How is that so, you ask? Well, it wasn’t easy, but I found a couple of ways to make myself stick to a routine. So, if you’re trying to workout consistently, here are some tips.

Don’t push yourself too much, especially if you haven’t worked out in a long time or at all.    2    . Starting off too difficult often makes you lose motivation and could also lead to bad self-esteem. Start small, and then gradually increase intensity.

Stop convincing yourself that you don’t have time to workout. It doesn’t matter how busy your schedule is — you could take 10 minutes out of your day to take a walk around campus.    3    

    4    You could workout with friends or family, create a playlist to workout to, or watch your favorites show while working out. Try switching up the setting where you workout by taking a walk in the park or doing yoga on the quad — anything to get yourself excited to work out.

It’s okay to take a break. When you first start working out, it can be tough. I was getting all Sorts of aches and pains when I first started, and I often denied myself rest days because I felt like I always had to workout at the highest intensity. Please remember to take a break. Your body needs to reset.    5    

Sticking to a workout routine can be difficult but if you follow some of these tips, you may find that you’re able to work out more consistently.

It was my first time to ski and I had been persuaded to come along with a group of friends who had booked a hotel for us all. Everyone else there had at least some experience of skiing in the past and all throughout the flight to Geneva they were talking funny stories about past trips to towns and villages I hadn’t even heard of.

While I knew I was in for a really good time, a little part of me was wondering whether I had made a mistake by joining such experienced skiers for a week in the Alps(阿尔卑斯山), when I had never even had a single skiing lesson on proper snow, that is to say real snow.

We arrived at the hotel in the afternoon and my training lessons didn’t start until the following morning. There was no way that I was going to stay behind and watch everyone else go out to enjoy the slopes(斜坡)without me, so I grabbed my stuff and headed out with the rest of them. Harriet, a member of our group, took pity on me and offered to pair up, giving me some tips on how to get started.

I had been planning hitting the ski track for months and now I arrived and I was about to feel the rush. The excitement started to spread. But on this occasion, it really was my first outing, and I was seriously nervous. I always loved snow, I loved throwing snowballs with my friends as a kid. but now I felt I was out of my comfort zone and, after I equipped myself, I was shaking all over nervously.

I tried to go forward. For all of about ten meters, I fell to the ground again and again. My instructor, Paul, was near and he was trying too hard not to laugh. I was feeling a little bit ashamed. Again to my feet, again to the ground.

And the pattern continued until finally I caught my balance.

With proper lessons the following days, I improved quickly.