1 . A Latin phrase beloved by every old-fashioned British schoolmaster was mens sana in corpora sano—a healthy mind in a healthy body. Greater physical activity is associated with better mental, as well as physical health. And it might also be linked to greater worker productivity, and thus faster economic growth. That is the conclusion of a new report from a European think tank — RAND.
The RAND study looks at different measures: absenteeism (when workers take time off for illness) and presenteeism (when they turn up for work but are less productive because of sickness). The latter measure was self-reported by employees, who were asked whether their work was negatively affected by health issues. The survey suggests that between 3 and 4.5 working days each year are lost as a consequence of workers being physically inactive. This is between 1.3% and 2% of annual working time. Most of this was down to presenteeism.
Another potential gain from improved fitness is reduced health-care costs. In America, where health care is often provided through employment-based systems, firms could benefit. RAND estimates that total American health savings could be $6bn a year by 2025. But the study’s authors conclude that if people met certain exercise targets, global GDP could be around 0.17-0.24% higher by 2050. Nothing to laugh at in a world of slowing growth.
How to encourage workers to become more active? Rewards are useful but only if they have conditions; giving all employees free gym membership does not seem to work. Another RAND Europe study examined an experiment in which workers were each given an Apple watch, payable in instalments (分期付款) at a discounted price—but only to those who agreed to have their physical activity monitored. Monthly repayments depended on how much exercise they took.
The problem is that many people are too optimistic about their health, ignoring the risks they face. This means that participation in workplace exercise plans tends to be low, around 7% in the sample studied by RAND. Firms are not the only ones that can encourage a healthier lifestyle; friends and families are likely to be more important. But businesses can play a bigger role.
If RAND is right, this may bring them financial benefits. Company taskmasters may yet grow fond of an adapted saying: mens sana in corporate sano.
1. What is the conclusion of the RAND report in Paragraph 1?| A．Greater physical activity may be beneficial to economy. |
| B．Physical health definitely results in mental health. |
| C．Team sports open up opportunities of career building. |
| D．Income affects the popularity of gym among workers |
| A．recovery from sickness guarantees company time |
| B．health conditions influence staff productivity |
| C．physically active staff can increase working hours |
| D．sick employees are supposed to take time off |
| A．To highlight the urgency to reduce health-care cost. |
| B．To predict the trend of global GDP by the year 2050. |
| C．To clarify the benefit of improved fitness to economy. |
| D．To warn against the slowing down of world finance. |
| A．Educating employees on the benefits of regular exercise. |
| B．Offering employees fancy sports equipment free of charge. |
| C．Monitoring employees’ physical activities every month. |
| D．Rewarding exercise takers with reduced repayment. |
A． | B． | C． | D． |
1. What is the speaker mainly talking about?
| A．An exercise activity. | B．A dance party. | C．A competition. |
| A．A student. | B．The principal. | C．A staff member. |
| A．Weight problems. | B．Learning problems. | C．Discipline problems. |
1. 时间地点；
2. 概况（109个国家，九千多名军人，329项运动）；
3. 影响或意义。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3. 结尾已为你写好。
Dear Peter,
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Yours,
Li Hua
4 . Monaco Grand Prix
The air is fresh with the heat of early summer as you arrive in the beautiful country of Monaco on the day of the race. Your
Each of the cars in the Monaco Grand Prix is
Indianapolis 500
On race day the grandstands (大看台）are filled with excitement as you enter the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. You find your seat,
Unlike Monaco Formula One cars, Indy cars are more uniform in their
| A．memory | B．aim | C．anxiety | D．ride |
| A．comfort | B．position | C．bottom | D．direction |
| A．colorful | B．fashionable | C．unique | D．similar |
| A．comes out | B．stands out | C．turns out | D．points out |
| A．Crossing | B．Constructing | C．Driving | D．Competing |
| A．touch | B．spot | C．error | D．hole |
| A．in history | B．in advance | C．in return | D．in all |
| A．pushing | B．drawing | C．fighting | D．fanning |
| A．following | B．arranging | C．warning | D．urging |
| A．design | B．preparation | C．display | D．regulation |
| A．timing | B．extending | C．delaying | D．lasting |
| A．check | B．maintenance | C．device | D．condition |
| A．short | B．special | C．constant | D．loud |
| A．professionally | B．positively | C．directly | D．carefully |
| A．cost | B．sacrifice | C．defeat | D．fail |
5 . On the morning of 19 April 1966, a hooded figure was hiding in the bushes near the start line of the Boston Marathon. When the gun went off to start the race, the mysterious person allowed the faster competitors to pass before joining the main group of runners. It wasn’t long before the others noticed that their new companion was a woman.
The infiltrator(渗入者) was 23-year-old graduate Roberta ’Bobbi’ Gibb, an experienced runner who had had her application to run denied on the grounds that the Boston Marathon was a Men’s Division race only. Her rejection letter categorically stated: Women aren’t allowed and furthermore are not physiologically able. Having run up to 30 miles a day nearly every day for the two years leading up to the race, Gibb knew that this was not true. She decided it was time attitudes towards women changed, and bought a bus ticket to Boston.
Contrary to her father’s fears that she would get hurt in the race, Gibb’s male counterparts showed her nothing but kindness. Once reporters got wind of her participation, the radio began broadcasting news of her progress. Encouraged by adrenalin and the delighted spectators, Gibb was heading for an under three-hour time for the best part of the course, but then she began running out of steam. Starved of food and water, her legs began to falter, and her feet became almost too painful to run on. If she hadn’t known that dropping out would have set women’s running back 20 or 30 years, she may not have completed the course. However, the cheering crowds on the last leg of the course succeeded in lifting her spirits, and she sprinted to the finish in a very respectable time of just under three hours and 22 minutes.
On finishing the race, Gibb was treated as a hero: she was met by the governor of Massachusetts, her parents were interviewed, newspapers ran articles on her and she was invited to a TV game show. More importantly for her, she had broken the stereotype that women didn’t run marathons. She began getting calls from inspired women who had taken up running themselves, and in 1967 a second female runner competed in the Boston Marathon alongside Gibb. The following year there were five female entrants, and by 1972, the rules had been changed to allow women to compete in all US marathons. However, by then, if you had asked anyone who was the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, they would have given you a completely different name: Kathy Switzer.
Twenty-year-old journalist Kathrine Switzer shot to fame after competing against Gibb in the 1967 Boston Marathon. On discovering Switzer had entered the race by pretending to be a man, race director Jock Semple tried to physically remove her, and it was this image of Switzer being attacked while running that stuck in people’s minds. Switzer continued running, finishing second in the 1975 Boston Marathon. Moreover, she became a successful media personality. It took Gibb decade of writing letters to magazines, TV stations and book publishers to set the record straight. But in the end, she succeeded in gaining her due recognition and was retroactively awarded first-place medals for her 1966, 1967 and 1968 races.
1. The woman is hiding in the bushes __________.| A．to cheer on the best participants |
| B．so as not to be seen at the starting line. |
| C．in order to watch the race unfold |
| D．so that she has a better view of the field |
| A．She didn’t want her plan to backfire(发生意外). |
| B．She wanted her parents to be proud of her. |
| C．She wasn’t willing to disappoint the crowd. |
| D．She couldn’t take the shame of failure. |
| A．He thinks she could have done better. |
| B．He considers it a standard to aim at. |
| C．He regards it as a good time. |
| D．He can’t believe she ran so well. |
| A．Her reputation grew as the years went by. |
| B．She was corrupted by fame. |
| C．She became a household name. |
| D．Her glory was short-lived |
Marathons can be bad for your health, scientists have warned after a study found 80 percent of competitors suffer kidney (肾) injury because of dehydration (脱水).
Researchers said that although the kidneys of the participants in the 26.2 mile race fully recovered within two days, their findings raise questions concerning the potential long-term impact at a time when marathons are increasing in popularity.
The findings were published by the American Journal of Kidney Diseases, as thousands of people prepare for next month's London Marathon.
Previous research has shown that engaging in unusually vigorous activities - such as military training - in warm climates can damage the kidneys, but little is known about the effects of marathon running.
A team of researchers led by Professor Chirag Parikh, of Yale University in the US, studied a small group of participants in the 2015 Hartford Marathon.
They collected blood and urine (尿液) samples before and after the event. They analysed a variety of markers of kidney injury, including serum creatinine (肌酐) levels, kidney cells on microscopy, and proteins in urine.
The researchers found that 82 percent of the runners that were studied showed Stage 1 Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) soon after the race. AKI is a condition in which the kidneys fail to filter (过滤) waste from the blood.
Prof Parikh said: "The kidney responds to the physical stress of marathon running as if it's injured, in a way that's similar to what happens in hospitalised patients when the kidney is affected by medical and surgical complications (并发症)."
The researchers stated that potential causes of the marathon-related kidney damage could be the sustained rise in core body temperature, dehydration, or decreased blood flow to the kidneys that occur during a marathon.
While the measured kidney injury resolved within two days of running the marathon, the researchers said the study still raises questions about the effects of repeated strenuous activity over time, especially in warm climates.
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7 . Massive changes in all of the world’s deeply cherished sporting habits are underway. Whether it’s one of London’s parks full of people playing softball, and Russians taking up rugby, or the Superbowl rivaling the British Football Cup Final as a televised spectator event in Britain, the patterns of players and spectators are changing beyond recognition. We are witnessing a globalization of our sporting culture.
That annual bicycle race, the Tour de France, much loved by the French, is a good case in point. Just a few years back it was a strictly continental affair with France, Belgium and Holland, Spain and Italy taking part in. But in recent years it has been dominated by Colombian mountain climbers, and American and Irish riders.
The people who really matter welcome the shift toward globalization. Peugeot, Michelin and Panasonic are multi-national corporations that want worldwide returns for the millions they invest in teams. So it does them literally a world of good to see this unofficial world championship become just that.
This is undoubtedly an economic-based revolution we are witnessing here, one made possible by communications technology, but made to happen because of marketing considerations. Sell the game and you can sell Coca Cola or Budweiser as well.
The skillful way in which American football has been sold to Europe is a good example of how all sports will develop. The aim of course is not really to spread the sport for its own sake, but to increase the number of people interested in the major money-making events. The economics of the Superbowl are already astronomical. With seats at US ＄125, gate receipts alone were a staggering ＄10,000,000. The most important statistic of the clay, however, was the ＄10,000,000 in TV advertising fees. Imagine how much that becomes when the eyes of the world are watching. Economic help to the development of world sports
So it came as a terrible shock, but not really as a surprise, to learn that some people are now suggesting that soccer change from being a game of two 45-minute halves, to one of four 25-minute quarters. The idea is unashamedly to capture more advertising revenue, without giving any thought for the integrity of a sport which relies for its essence on the flowing nature of the action.
Moreover, as sports expand into world markets, and as our choice of sports as consumers also grows, we will demand to see them played at a higher and higher level. In boxing we have already seen numerous, dubious world title categories because people will not pay to see anything less than a "World Title" fight, and this means that the title fights have to be held in different countries around the world!
1. Globalization of sporting culture means that ______.| A．more people are taking up sports |
| B．traditional sports are getting popular |
| C．many local sports are becoming international |
| D．foreigners are more interested in local sports |
| A．Good economic returns. |
| B．Revival of traditional games |
| C．Communications technology. |
| D．Marketing strategies. |
| A．Favorable. | B．Unclear. |
| C．Reserved. | D．Critical. |
| A．the commercialization of sporting culture |
| B．the worldwide popularization of sports |
| C．the economic help to the development of sports |
| D．the availability of sports watching to more people |
| A．He agrees with the woman. |
| B．He hasn’t been to the play recently. |
| C．He doesn’t know much about basketball. |
| D．He doesn’t think the team has been playing well. |
Most people get sweaty palms just staring at EI Capitan, a breathtaking rock formation i Yosemite National Park, California. Alex Honnold’s stayed dry. And this June, he managed to climb the 900-meter vertical wall, pulling on edges barely big enough for
Honnold could not
EI Capitan had been climbed
The achievement marks the latest in a series of milestones for sport climbing (竞技攀岩). In 2015, two other American Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson, established a route up the Dawn Wall, EI Capitan’s
These have strengthened climbing’s position in the sporting circle in America and elsewhere. Google has invited Jorgeson to give a motivational talk to its employees. Climbing gyms have appeared around the globe over the past decade, making the event safer and more
10 . Over the years, cheerleading has taken two primary forms: game-time cheerleading and competitive cheerleading. Game-time cheerleaders’ main goal is to entertain the crowd and lead them with team cheers, which should not be considered a sport. However, competitive cheerleading is more than a form of entertainment. It is really a competitive sport.
Competitive cheerleading includes lots of physical activity. The majority of the teams require a certain level of tumbling (翻腾运动) ability. It’s a very common thing for gymnasts, so it’ s easy for them to go into competitive cheerleading. Usually these cheerleaders integrate lots of their gymnastics experience including their jumps, tumbling, and overall energy. They also perform lifts and throws. This is where the “fliers” are thrown in the air, held by “bases” in different positions that require strength and working with other teammates.
Competitive cheerleading is also an activity that is governed by rules under which a winner can be declared. It is awarded points for technique, creativity and sharpness. Usually the more difficult the action is, the better the score is. That’s why cheerleaders are trying to experience great difficulty in their performance.
Besides, there is also a strict rule of time. The whole performance has to be completed in less than three minutes and fifteen seconds, during which the cheerleaders are required to stay within a certain area. Any performance beyond the limit of time is invalid.
Another reason for the fact that competitive cheerleading is one of the hardest sports is that it has more reported injuries. According to some research, competitive cheerleading is the number one cause of serious sports injuries to women. Emergency room visits for it are five times the number than for any other sport, partially because cheerleaders don’t use protective equipment. Smiling cheerleaders are thrown into the air and move down into the arms of the teammates, which may easily cause injuries. Generally, these injuries affect all areas of the body, including wrists, shoulders, ankles, head, and neck.
There can be no doubt that competitive cheerleading is a sport with professional skills. Hopefully, it will appear in the Olympics since cheerleaders are just as athletic and physically fit as those involved in the more accepted sports. It should be noted that it is a team sport and even the smallest mistake made by one teammate can bring the score of the entire team down. So without working together to achieve the goal, first place is out of reach.
1. What is the main purpose of competitive cheerleading?| A．To compare skills of participants. |
| B．To make the audience feel amused. |
| C．To attract more people to watch events. |
| D．To cheer up the competitors on the court. |
| A．examine | B．identify |
| C．combine | D．replace |
| A．lacks necessary guidelines to follow |
| B．enjoys greater popularity than other sports |
| C．requires more designed actions than gymnastics |
| D．has a relatively high rate of damage to the body |
I: Introduction P: Point Sp: Sub-point (次要点) C: Conclusion
A． | B． |
C． | D． |
