1 . When I was in my college, I have a full class schedule and a part-time job. I ________ had time for exercise. On top of that, my lifestyle as a starving college student lent itself to many a fast-food run. Undoubtedly, I was ________.

After graduation, I decided to go to the ________.Together with a friend, I began to work out ________. I was very satisfied. My friend, however, became ________. One day, he suggested that we take up a sport.

Me? Sports? No way. I was not ________, and no one was going to change my mind. However, after a few weeks, I stepped onto an outdoor racquetball court (球场) unwillingly. I hit the ball, sending it flying in every direction (方向) except for the direction that I had ________.

But just as I was beginning to feel comfortable.my friend suggested we play tennis ________. Tennis? I can’t play tennis! I was ________ against his new suggestion. However, weeks later, I found myself standing on a tennis court.________.I ran after every ball that he served to me, completely ________ about ninety percent of them, and hitting the rest into the woods and the other court.

The first few months were quite ________. But one day, as the ball came flying toward me, my racket and the ball finally met in what tennis players consider as the “sweet spot”. I watched ________ as my return landed powerfully on the other side of the court, almost exactly where I had aimed. I had finally learned how to play tennis properly (正确的)!

Obviously, if I hadn’t stepped outside of my comfort zone (区域), I would have never ________how much I enjoyed tennis. I began to try new things willingly, with a sense of ________.

4 . When Marco was a boy, he tried everything to get his father’s love and attention. He studied hard to get good ________ and tried to behave well. He was shy and shorter than the other boys. Besides, his father was ________ and had little time for him. Except for his ________ for housework after school, there was no communication. Marco felt very ________.

One day, his maths teacher called him that some young teenagers were ________ a public speaking contest. She thought he should give it a ________. She firmly believed he could perform on stage (舞台) like other kids. Feeling her strong trust, Marco agreed to ________ the contest.

All winter, he took a bus to ________ twice a week in another city, where the competition would take place. Marco was taken by a strong ________ he never felt before. Finally, the big day arrived. His father, and yes, his maths teacher, were present. When he stepped onto the stage and began to speak, he felt ________ at home. He was funny, and acted very naturally. He won! He noticed his father’s eyes were ________ — he was so proud. It was then that his father ________ he should pay more attention to the child.

As the winner, his name was ________ in the local papers. He knew this was the ________ of his new life. It all happened because of a phone call, from one who ________ him.

5 . As the drumbeat changed, the dress fluttered in tune with the girl’s changing steps. Finally, she _______ the performance in a neat pose on stage before the audience.

The girl _______ is actually me. I’ve learned Latin dance since childhood. However, when I became a young girl, conflicts brought by Latin dance made me _______. The fair skin and slim bodies of mainstream beauty stand in contrast to what Latin dance pursues: power and wildness. As a young girl, I am _______ for beauty. But a girl like me with strong muscles stands out in a crowd. In addition, _______ feelings caused by unkind judgment piled up in my heart. It was so much that I compromised between power and _______.

Luckily, in Vienna, the match for the Chinese youth team _______ my attention, dragging me out of _______. Players from different countries gathered to _______ the honors. Though I had made my efforts, I was ________ to find that I didn’t get the score I expected. The reason, obviously, lay in my ________. With my reduced intake of protein and carbohydrates, I ________ lost a lot of weight, but at the cost of a sense of power and speed in dance.

In between games, I saw a little girl from Europe take firm and powerful steps in the ________. Her beauty came from her full muscles. The confidence in her eyes was unstoppable. Definitely, she won the top prize. ________ her so much, I made her acquaintance and shared my difficult situation. Till now I do remember the confidence that ________ me and some of her words: “Just be yourself.”

Looking back, I’m still the dancing girl but my heart has grown lighter. Something within me is dancing.

8 . I’ve never been an athlete. At school, my main goal was to _________ PE at all costs. In my twenties, I went for yoga class occasionally, but that was really the summary of my athletic accomplishments.

That was until the end of 2016, when I was unexpectedly laid off. I was feeling quite depressed but pushed myself to _________ for the TCS NYC Marathon runners.

However, while being there, I got phenomenal _________ from all the runners, smiling, applauding and high-fiving constantly. I thought maybe I could give running a _________ , just to try, to see where it _________ me. So I tried. I got on a treadmill (跑步机) in my local gym the next morning. I was out of breath by minute five, but I slowed down, walked for a little bit and then restarted. I came back to the gym the next day, hoping to _________ a few minutes longer. By the end of two weeks, I could run for 30 minutes.

While my body started to look more toned, I also noticed my negative thoughts didn’t occur that _________ . And it sparked a thought — what if I could set a running goal and sign up for my first-ever race? I did and races became a new hobby.

Also, when I was going for interviews, I started to feel _________ in my abilities. I got my full-time job _________ at my dream company just weeks before the half-marathon. Although I got injured right before the race, I still went for it.

I still have a long running journey ahead of me. Running gives me __________ that I can do anything I set my mind to.

9 . Hunter Leininger, from Georgia, USA has been adventure racing(探险速度赛) since he was seven years old. Now, at age 19, he has set world records, traveled around the globe, and _______ over 50 races! And he is now on a mission to _______ other young people to follow their own dreams.

Hunter became interested in adventure racing through his dad. While playing football, Hunter was looking to _______ something new. He asked his dad if he could _______ him in an adventure race, and he went on to complete his first race in about 6 hours.

He has learned a lot of perseverance through adventure racing. There can be a lot of _______ in a race, but if you drop out, your whole team will have to _______. This is unlike other team sports, where you can stop and be _______ by another player. In racing, and in his life, the sport has taught Hunter to keep going when times get tougher.

As reported by the USARA, Hunter wants “to inspire young people that they can achieve incredible things at whatever age and that they don’t have to _______ until they get older. _______ people put off their dreams at a young age, they tend to never come back to them, which ________ them never achieving anything. The best time to do something is now, so go after your dreams before it’s too late!”

10 . In one Nebraska teen running race before graduating from high school, Brandon Schutt’s personal best turned out not to be about marking the fastest time but displaying the biggest heart.

During the race, he knew he had the potential to ________ for the upcoming state meet, so he slowed to a comfortable ________ that would allow him to simply enjoy the moment and the day. Meanwhile, aiming to ________ his own personal record, after a fast start, Blake Cerveny continued to push himself ________. With less than 400 meters to go, Cerveny got a cramp (抽筋) in his legs and they ________ him. ________ to finish, Cerveny rose from the ground and continued on, only to ________ again after another 150 metere... and again. This time he’d ________ it only 25 meters more before going down. With tremendous effort, the young runner pulled himself up and with a(n) ________ pace, moved forward for one final push. It wasn’t enough. Less than 100 meters from the ________ line, he lay curled on the ground. His ________ had simply given out.

Brandon Schutt, who was at his side, ________ a helping hand. His first ________ to get Cerveny up failed, but like Cerveny, he too refused to ________. With a second tug (拖拽), Cerveny was on his ________. With Cerveny holding Schutt for ________ and Schutt helping Cerveny maintain balance, the two ________ the Final 75 meters. Schutt even made sure the injured runner crossed the finish line first, securing his ________ a faster time.

In today’s competitive world in which the emphasis in athletics is so often put on breaking records, it was ________ to see that for an athlete like Brandon Schutt, the value of true sportsmanship still had legs. And for others, like Blake Cerveny, knowing that finishing the race, no matter the odds or adversity, is the true ________ of a win.