1 . On nothing but a “wooden board and four wheels”, a group of women are speeding down windy mountain roads. For most people, this could sound _________. But for Anna Pixner, downhill skateboarding at speed brings a _________ feeling: freedom.

Austrian Pixner got _________ in this sport six years ago. When she started competing, she would _________ in crowds of hundreds of men. Journalists point out that she is a(n)_________ in this male-dominated sport, but Pixner has tired of such _________. “There’s not that much of a difference except that we _________ started a bit later. There is no media about it... if you never saw a woman doing that, it’s harder to get the _________ to do that.”

That is about to _________: Pixner’s journey is captured in a new film “Woolf Women,” which __________ her 5,700-kilometer journey with four other young women across Europe in 2019. One of the central __________ of the film is mental health. Pixner says she finds skating helpful to all kinds of mental issues. “For myself, I __________ it too. I used to be extremely anxious and skateboarding absolutely __________ me.”

Though skateboarding was once a sport on the __________ of society, it is now becoming more mainstream, and in 2021 became an Olympic event. Pixner hopes that downhill skateboarding will soon __________ its appeal to more youngsters.

3 . When I was a graduate student, I felt too busy to exercise. I promised myself I’d do it once I _________ school. I knew I would be busy as an assistant professor. _________. I believed in my willpower.

When I started my first job at Williams College, I _________ did exercise regularly. It turned out that I was in a(n) _________ that offered excellent support for what I _________ to do.

Research shows that our _________ are influenced by whether our environment makes something easy or difficult. Even the smallest difference can have an outsized _________. In one study, researchers _________ items from the front to the back of a salad bar-a change of just 10 inches-and the _________ inconvenience made people eat less of these items.

My plan to exercise benefited from Williamstown’s long winter. People figured the best way through it was to get __________ happily and enjoy it. I kept meeting people who were __________ joggers. When I started, they were quick to offer social __________. With so many runners in town, it was easy to find trails (小径), including those __________ for beginners.

Do __________ your environment to make challenging tasks easier. If you want to socialize, befriend outgoing persons. Or __________ your cell phone when you need to concentrate on study. The right surroundings are more powerful than willpower alone.

4 . Cody Wilkins sat on the bench, while his soccer teammates were scoring goals on the field. It had been a(n) ______ high school year for him. He was the only freshman on the team. He most never got to play, and he felt like a______.

“My confidence was shot. I thought maybe I wasn’t as good as my coaches thought I was during tryout. I thought maybe I should ______.” Cody says.

Cody suffered once he discovered he wasn’t a good soccer player. But he ______ to keep going. “The struggle I______made me want to work harder,” he says. “However talented you are, you can always ______ in sports.”

Then Cody took advantage of his ______ on the bench to watch his more skilled and experienced teammates play the game, and by the time he was a junior, he had improved so much that he was ______ captain of his team. He is now a senior and is being ______ to play soccer for several colleges.

If you base your ______just on whether you win or lose, you will never be happy. Winning is always ______ because there is always another ______ waiting for you.

No one is______. But you should learn about your strengths and weaknesses and know how to______ from failure. Once you accept that losing something isn’t the end of your world, you can get on with the business of living your life and learning from it. In the long run, this is _______.

5 . As a high school coach, I did all I could to help my boys win their games.I____for victory as much as they did. However,a dramatic____happening after I refereed a game____my view on victories and defeats.

The game was between New Rochelle and Yonkers High. It was well played and __ contested. When there were only 30 seconds left, Yonkers was____by one point. When Yonkers ___their last shot, New Rochelle recovered the ball, and tapped (补篮) it in for what looked like___. The clock showed the game was over, but I hadn't___ the final buzzer (蜂鸣器) because of the___ noise.

Not having got help from the other official, I____the young timekeeper. He said, "Mr. Covino,the buzzer went off as the ball rolled off the rim (篮筐), before the____tap - in was made. "Coming up to New Rochelle’s coach O’Brien, he added, "I'm sorry, Dad. The time ran out before the final___."

Suddenly, like the sun coming out from behind a cloud, Coach O’Brien's face ___. He said,"That's okay, Joe. You did what you had to do. I’m____of you. "

Turning to me, he said, "Mr. Covino, I want you to meet my ___, Joe. "Then they walked off together, the coach's arm around Joe's shoulder.