1 . More than 30,000 runners, selected from 160,000 applicants both in and out of China, took part in this year’s Beijing Marathon on Nov 3.

Wearing colorful T-shirts and posing for photos, they __ at Tian’anmen Square before taking their __ at the starting line.

Nearly a decade ago, Chinese marathon ___struggled to make full preparations. Now, at big __ like the Beijing Marathon, runners must win a lottery (彩票) to enter.

This is __ of the world’s running boom. For millions of runners around the world, the real reason they __ to pound the roads until their legs hurt is more than weight loss or fitness.

Chasing records like the three-hour __, for example, is important, but it’s not the reason people run mile after mile, up hills, in wind and rain, when they could just stay __ in their beds. Record times are __ the carrots they hang in front of themselves.

Last year, a runner in the United Kingdom __ with the goal of running a marathon in less than three hours. In the end, he __ in three hours and two minutes. However, he was __ afterward. “If I’d done it, that would be it,” he told the Guardian. “Now I’ve still got my___, I can try again next year.”

Although running is __ and requires effort, it also brings joy. __ children. When they are excited, they can^’t stop running back and forth, __.

Indeed, when we race through the streets of a city, splashing (踏过）through puddles (水洼), getting __ in the rain and ruffled (吹乱的）in the wind, we can __ that childish joy again. As Holden Caulfield, the main __ of the novel The catcher in the Rye (《麦田里的守望者》), said, “I don’t __ know what I was running for — I guess I just felt like it.”

2 . At age 83, Barbara Humbert dreams of taking part in next year’s “Marathon for All” race at the Paris Olympic Games. It is the first _________ of its kind, allowing amateur (业余) athletes to run the same race path as the Olympic marathon athletes. Humbert has a history of success suggesting she could _________ some runners half her age.

Unlike your _________ great-grandmother, the German-born Frenchwoman runs 50 kilometers a week. She has _________ in many marathons and has the medals to show for it. “It’s _________ to have the Olympics in my homeland,” said Humbert, “It would be a _________ for my 60th marathon.”

However, Humbert is unsure whether she will receive the paper for _________ to the race, as the number for the Marathon for All will be _________ to 20,024. Humbert’s husband Jacques is a big supporter, helping where he can. He is waiting for the sports ministry’s response to her _________ for joining in the race.

Many __________ hanging in the entrance of Barbara and Jacques’s home __________ Barbara of all the races she has taken part in, from Athens to Boston and many other cities. She figures out that she has __________ about 8,000 kilometers in those races.

To __________ others to follow in her footsteps, she said of running, “It gives you balance. You run, you empty your head, you feel __________ relaxed afterwards.” Barbara is planning for more races __________ just staying on what has been achieved.

4 . When I tried out for the football team during the summer before 9th grade, I never imagined how important this sport would become in my life. Football is a _____ sport, at times almost painful, and practices really _____ a team’s physical and mental limits. Without trust in my own ability and a strong sense of commitment, I would never have managed to continue after years of hard work as a player, and with countless _____.

In the first year, I played on the defensive line. This was an amazing _____ that gave me a great sense of achievement. But in the last game of the season, I was seriously injured. I was prohibited from any physical activities for six months. After going _____ a series of physical treatments, I returned to the field as a team captain. I practiced harder than ever to make up for my _____ time.

In September, during my junior year, my name was mentioned in the local newspaper as the key defensive lineman on the team. After playing a fantastic season, I was given the _____ of the Most Valuable Player.

_____, my skills in football do not magically extend to other sports. During the winter break, I went on a snowboarding trip and seriously injured my right shoulder. I had to have four _____. Since I could not use my right arm for two months, I had to learn how to write and eat using my left hand.

______ life must go on. I knew that my own present efforts would decide my future, so I ______ the strict training program to build up strength and improve flexibility in my ______. After an eight-month recovery, I was back to the field playing football, the sport I ______.

In this sense, the world of football has taught me an important life lesson: ______ and commitment make what seems impossible ______. This lesson from football is the one that can be applied to every part of life.

6 . After having a child, I found my regular exercise interrupted. I was not only busy, but I also lacked the motivation. Solo gym sessions or some quick _______ following the DVD while the baby sleeps didn’t _______ me at all. So I decided to sign up for a hiking _______ in Peru, hoping that it would get me _______ again.

Look over my travel arrangements before I left. I scanned phrases such as “3-hour hike _______ primitive forests” and “sliding with a rope down waterfalls”, and I started to feel a little _______.

However, as we made our way through the forests and were _______ with amazing views of awesome waterfalls, this team of strangers _______ me to go on. Being physically active with a group motivated me to reach the _______ or the valley below—rather than simply lying down on the forest floor and giving up, ________ I might have done if I were alone.

Experts confirm my experience: Group exercise can really start a new attitude toward fitness. “People get a better ________ in a group than they do on their own,” said Allison Kimmel, a group ________ instructor. That’s because other people ________ both support and competition. “Humans are ________ animals and the shared experience of facing a challenge together is compelling (不可抗拒的),” said David Ezell, the CEO of fitness provider Darien Wellness.

With the support of a group, I’m slowly getting back into a ________ lifestyle.

7 . Exercise and I had never had a good relationship due to my fear of sports. From a young age, my dad _______ me into a dozen sports. I didn’t like any of them, _______.

When I entered the University of Regina, my dad _______ telling me “You have to find a way to stay _______.” or “You don’t want to get the Freshman 15, do you?” So I _______ to give swimming a shot, but I _______ managed to go to the pool twice during the fall semester (学期). Worse still, I was _______ to convince myself that’s OK.

The spring semester came. A friend of mine _______ me if I wanted to try Zumba (尊巴) with her. All I knew about Zumba was that it was basically a kind of exercise: dancing to Latin pop songs. It didn’t sound too bad, but I couldn’t be _______.

I went, and that was it. Zumba became my ________ of tea. The instructor would always say, “Don’t worry about the steps. Have fun. Do your own thing.” That removed my ________ of sports. I didn’t have to be ________. I didn’t even have to be good. I just needed to ________ the music and move. Zumba did ________ me from the Freshman 15, and it also did so much more. It let me make ________ with my unpleasant past about physical exercise, and enjoy staying healthy.

9 . A beautiful September evening, my 11-year-old grandson, Josh, and his team were warming up for their first football game of the season.

I was ________ when I saw the other team was, ________, ten inches taller than our players. It didn’t take long for their ________ advantage to show. They took a 7-0 lead very ________. At the half, the score stood at 34 to 6. Josh saw minimal play time. In the second half, they used Josh more often. The score ________ to 40 to 6.

Once again, the other team began their ________ down the field. Their quarterback threw the ball. The receiver caught it and ________ the goal. There was only one man in his ________—Josh. Josh dove and ________ that boy’s legs with all his strength. The receiver dragged Josh a couple of yards and ________ fell down.

On the next play, their quarterback shot through an opening and rushed to the goal, but there was Josh again. Josh took him off his feet and ________ another goal. They scored on the last play, but it wasn’t Josh’s ________. The game ended with a score of 48 to 6.

On the way home, I wanted to ________ Josh, but he turned to me with a ________ smile. “Grandpa, that was a ________ game.”

“But you lost, 48 to 6!”

“I know, but I did well.”

The boy understood the game better than I did. They didn’t win, but he did his best. I was proud of him. More importantly, he was proud of himself.

10 . For a teen running in his final cross-country outing before graduating from high school, his personal best wasn’t about marking the fastest time but something more________.

When he came out of the blocks that day, Brandon Schutt knew if his ________ was good enough, he still had the potential to ________ the upcoming state meet. A mile into the 3.1-mile race, though, Schutt felt bad. Instead of risking injury, he ________ to a comfortable pace.

________, Omaha Burke High School student Blake Cerveny was also running. Aiming to beat his own personal record, after a fast start, he continued to ________ himself hard. Suddenly, Cerveny’s legs cramped (抽筋) up and ________ him. But determined to finish, Cerveny rose from the track again and again. However, about 100 meters from the finish line, he lay curled (蜷缩) on the ground. His legs had simply ________.

At this time, Brandon Schutt was at his side to offer a ________. His first attempt to get Cerveny up failed, but like Cerveny, he also refused to________. With a second ________, Cerveny was on his feet. At a measured jog, with Cerveny holding Schutt for support and Schutt helping Cerveny maintain ________, the two completed the race together. Schutt even ensured the injured runner crossed the finish line first, ________ his opponent a faster time.

In today’s competitive world, it was ________ to see that for an athlete like Brandon Schutt, the ________ of true sportsmanship still had legs (会长期受到关注).