1 . Former pro basketball player Kobe Bryant won five NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers while making himself as one of the game’s all-time greats. He died tragically in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020.
Kobe Bryant was born with basketball already in his blood. His dad was a former NBA star Joe “Jellybean” Bryant. Born on August 23, 1978, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Kobe spent his early years in Italy, because his dad started playing basketball in Europe and his family moved there. The family moved back to the United States when Kobe was 13 and he started playing high school basketball.
Kobe knew he was already good enough to play in the NBA, so he skipped college and was selected right after high school. He played in the NBA All-Star Game for the first time in 1998 and by 2000, Kobe had developed into one of the best basketballs players. Kobe and Shaquille O’Neal teamed up to lead the LA Lakers to three straight NBA Championship (冠军) Titles from 2000 to 2002.
In 2003, Kobe was caught by the police. In 2004, the case against Kobe was dropped, but Kobe still had to live with a damaged reputation. In 2004, Kobe tried to prove that he could lead the LA Lakers without Shaq. After Kobe told the Lakers he wouldn’t be wearing the purple and gold if Shaq was in the team, O’Neal was traded to the Miami Heat before the 2004-2005 season.
In 2008, Bryant was named Most Valuable Player and carried his team to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics. In the 2009 NBA Finals, the Lakers beat the Orlando Magic to win the championship.
Although later seasons were affected by injuries, he surpassed (超越) Michael Jordan for third place on the NBA all-time scoring list in December 2014 and retired in 2016 after scoring 60 points in his final game.
1. Kobe Bryant passed away at the age of _______.| A．37 | B．40 | C．42 | D．45 |
| A．Kobe’s blood was special when he was born. |
| B．All of Kobe’s family members are basketball players. |
| C．Kobe got a basketball when he was born. |
| D．Kobe was born to be a basketball player. |
| A．upset | B．confident | C．doubtful | D．not confident |
| A．A Brief Introduction of Kobe | B．How to Become A Basketball Star |
| C．The NBA All-Star Game | D．The LA Lakers |
2 . The true Olympic spirit has been displayed by Canadian cross-country ski coach Justin Wadsworth, who helped Russian athlete Anton Gafarov with his broken ski during the Men’s Sprint Free Semifinals.
Gafarov’s start wasn’t smooth. He fell three times, crashing early in the race and breaking his ski. It was clear that Gafarov was out of the race for the men’s finals and wouldn’t be able to compete for medals. Still, he wanted to finish in front of the home crowd, but his left ski was too badly damaged in the crash and its base had come off. The Russian skier faced finishing the race by walking to the line, not skiing.
However, the Russian’s fall was seen by Canadian coach Justin Wadsworth, who immediately ran on to the course and helped Gafarov. “I went over and gave him one of Alex Harvey’s, a member of the Canadian team who didn’t qualify for the finals. It was about giving Gafarov some dignity (尊严) so he didn’t have to walk to the finish area,” Wadsworth said. “We help because we know everyone works so hard in our sport,” says Wadsworth, who was an Olympic skier for the S before becoming a coach. “Everyone wants fair results. It was a matter of allowing Gafarov to finish the race.”
Gafarov was thoughtful about his performance. “My fall cost me a broken ski and a pole,” said Anton Gafarov, adding that he decided to continue fighting for the finals despite all the difficulties.
Gafarov believed the race should be finished in any way possible. “It was a matter of principle to hold on to the end,” he added. He is not devastated (毁灭) by his failure and is eager to take part in the next Winter Olympics despite back problems due to injuries.
1. What happened to Gafarov during the Men’s Sprint Free Semifinals?| A．He lost his ski in the unlucky crash. |
| B．He gave up the race after falling three times. |
| C．He got the gold medal for the men’s finals. |
| D．He had his ski broken in the early race. |
| A．He felt happy for Gafarov’s bad luck in the race. |
| B．He knew what price Gafarov paid for the competition. |
| C．He was angry with his player’s not qualifying for the finals. |
| D．He once worked hard to become an Olympic skier for Canada. |
| A．Every dog has its day. | B．Rome isn’t built overnight. |
| C．Never give up in face of difficulty. | D．There is no end to learning. |
| A．The Olympic Spirit | B．The Unlucky Day |
| C．The History of Olympic Games | D．The Winning Gold Medal |
3 . “Some day, there’ll be no Americans left in the NBA,” said 12-year-old Xing Tao, who joined his school team two weeks ago after watching Yao Ming in a televised NBA game, “The players will all be Chinese, like Yao.”
To China, Yao is a home-grown superstar who helped make the world’s first basketball league closer to Chinese players. To the NBA, the 2.23-meter center offers an opening of a different sort into the world’s largest new market. Yao’s NBA first appearance against the Indiana Pacers in October reached 287 million families in the US. That game might have been a bit of a letdown to Yao’s fans: He played just 11 of the 48 minutes, had two rebounds (篮板) and got no points. Comparing that with his performance on December 19, also against Indiana, Yao won 29 points and 10 rebounds. “This was one of the most exciting games I’ve had,” Yao said after Houston’s 95-83 victory. The NBA has to be excited about his on-count success. In all his games, he’s averaging 12.7 points and 7.7 rebounds, quite good for a new star. “Yao Ming has brought the NBA closer to the Chinese,” said NBA spokeswoman Cheong Sau Ching, “That makes the dream seem practical for other people in China and proud to be Chinese.”
The 22-year-old Yao is not the country’s first player in the NBA: Wang Zhizhi broke down the Dallas Mavericks in November 2003. But Yao’s combination of modesty (谦虚) and skills make him a favorite back home.
1. What’s the direct reason for Xing Tao to join the school basketball team?| A．He watched an NBA game. | B．He liked basketball. |
| C．He hoped to play for the NBA. | D．He had dream that he would become a basketball star. |
| A．zero | B．two | C．29 | D．10 |
| A．failure | B．surprise | C．disappointment | D．sadness. |
| A．He has performed excellently. | B．He is modest. |
| C．More and more Chinese people like to watch his games. | D．Both A and B. |
| A．Middle school students want to play basketball. |
| B．Yao Ming makes NBA closer to China. |
| C．There’ll be no Americans left in the NBA. |
| D．There are many new stars from China in the NBA. |
4 . Every year, runner all over the world challenge themselves in marathons(马 拉松)long running events that go on for tens of kilometers. On October 12, Eliud Kipchoge ran a record-breaking marathon. He finished a42. 2-kilometer-long marathon in just 1 hour, 59 minutes and 40 seconds. The 34-year-old Olympic champion from Kenya became the first person to run a marathon of the full length in less than two hours.
I can tell people that no human is limited. I expect more people all over the world to run under two hours after today, “Kipchoge told Live Sports.
Besides Kipchoge’s hard work, a few science and technology tricks also helped him make history.
Hills and turns slow runners down. Kipchoge’s team picked a course in Vienna for its gentle curves(弯曲度). The city’s cool and dry weather also helped keep Kipchoge’s body running more efficiently. A special pair of shoes also played a big part. The shoes are made of a new material, which can take in a runner’s energy when his et meet the ground. Then it returns part of the energy to the runner, which helped Kipchoge run faster.
What’s more, Kipchoge had a dream team of 41 members. Five runners formed a V-shape ahead of Kipchoge, which reduced drag. Two runners followed directly behind to push him forward. The team took turns running every 5 kilometers. Kipchoge stayed under a two-hour pace for almost the whole race. A pace car drove in front of everyone and cast (投射) a laser beam(激光束)on the road, keeping the team at the right pace. ”Few world records today are technology-free, “ the Xinhua News Agency said.
1. According to the passage, Kipchoge was the first person to __________.| A．run a full-length marathon in Kenya |
| B．use technology in an Olympic marathon |
| C．finish a full-length marathon in two hours |
| D．win an Olympic marathon championship |
| A．His team chose a course in Kenya for his training. |
| B．Cool and dry weather kept him from running efficiently. |
| C．He trained to deal with sharp hills and turns in Vienna. |
| D．His record was partly because of the specially-designed shoes. |
| A．Kipchoge worked harder than other runners. |
| B．Kipchoge’s new record was a result of free technology. |
| C．Science and technology played a role in Kipchoge’s win. |
| D．Keeping the right pace was the key to Kipchoge’s success. |
| A．A diary. | B．A newspaper. |
| C．A guidebook. | D．A novel. |
5 . THE EARTH DAY: Thursday April 22nd 2:30 to 5:30
1. What will the participants do?
| A．Compete in a quiz about plants. | B．Assist the gardeners to plant trees. |
| C．Hunt animals in the botanical garden. | D．Play a game with the help of some clues. |
| A．$15 | B．$20 | C．$40 | D．$60 |
| A．Vanilla Orchid and Angel’s Trumpet. | B．Angel’s Trumpet and Voodoo Lily. |
| C．Voodoo Lily and Lemon Grass. | D．Lemon Grass and Vanilla Orchid |
6 . The Underwater Photographer of the Year, which originated from 1965, is a yearly contest based in the United Kingdom. As you might expect, the focus is on photos taken underwater, whether in the ocean, in lakes or rivers, or even swimming pools.
The pictures are judged in several different categories. The contest in 2020 had over 5,500 entries from 70 different countries.
The grand prize winner was “Frozen Mobile Home” by French photographer Greg Lecoeur. The photo shows seals swimming around a small iceberg. To get the picture, Mr Lecoeur traveled to Antarctica in a small boat and spent time tracking the life around floating icebergs.
The photo “Last Dawn, Last Gasp” by Pasquale Vassallo of Italy won the award for Ocean Protection Photographer of the Year. Mr Vassallo said that he went diving early in the morning to take this picture of a tuna (金枪鱼) trapped as fishermen pulled their nets in.
Mr Vassallo also took “Octopus Training”, a picture that won in the category of “Behavior”. He says that when he came up after a dive, he noticed a soccer ball floating on the surface. When he went to check it out, he saw that there was an octopus hanging from the ball. Mr Vassallo says he doesn’t understand what the octopus was doing, but wonders if it was training for the World Cup.
Though Rooman Luc of Belgium didn’t win the “Portrait” category, his photo, titled “Angry Seahorse”, is quite striking. The closeup shot of a seahorse staring strictly into the camera was named runnerup (second place). He said he spent nearly an hour standing in kneehigh water being bitten by mosquitos in order to get the picture.
The contest has many more amazing photos that can be viewed on the site, along with the stories behind them. There is even a book with all of the contents that can be downloaded for free.
1. Which isn’t suitable to enter the Underwater Photographer of the Year contest?| A．The crying dolphin. |
| B．Saving the elephant. |
| C．The dancing lemon shark. |
| D．Kissing the whale. |
| A．A tuna is hard to shoot. |
| B．We should protect ocean animals. |
| C．Diving early in the morning is painful. |
| D．There are too many fishing nets in the sea. |
| A．The octopus is endangered. |
| B．Photography should be serious. |
| C．The photographer has a sense of humour. |
| D．The photographer concerns himself about the octopus. |
| A．Arts. | B．Literature. |
| C．Documentary. | D．Education. |
7 . Benefits of Sports
Doing sports is a physical, mental and social adventure. It’s a great way for children to take a break from studies and release extra energy. It also helps them lead fuller and happier lives as regular sports have proven beneficial to overall well-being.
The physical benefits of doing sports are probably the most obvious. Regardless of your fitness level when you start playing sports, you’ll notice an increase in your overall fitness once you’re involved.
Children who participate in sports might also benefit from the social aspect, feeling part of a group, building up responsibility and leadership.
Discipline is another social advantage. Most organized sports require a strict training and practice schedule. As a student-athlete, you need to balance studies and athletics.
There is no shortage of reasons to find a sport to get involved in. Are you ready to go? Pick one and get moving!
| A．It’s not just your body that benefits from sports. |
| B．Therefore, playing sports is going to make you more fit. |
| C．But remember, a child’s self-worth should not be distinguished by victory or loss. |
| D．If you play group sports, you’ll be part of a team that takes direction from a coach. |
| E．Nearly every sport requires physical activities and the competitive skills. |
| F．Among these, learning how to function as part of a team is the most important advantage. |
| G．Only with strict discipline can you be successful both in the classroom and in the sports field. |
8 . Sport is very popular in England. In other words, lots of English people like the idea of sport. A lot watch sport on TV. But the number who take part in sport is quite small.
On the whole, English people prefer to be fat rather than thin.
The most popular sport in England is football. Football is played on Saturday afternoon in most towns and the supporters of a certain team will travel from one end of the country to the other to see their team play. There are four divisions(级别) of the football league. Not Surprisingly, the best teams are in the first division. But the best supporters are often in the fourth division. You have to be a good supporter to watch the fourth division football!
Many other sports are also played in England, such as golf, in which you try to knock a ball into a hole; basketball, in which you try to get a ball through a net; tennis, in which you try to hit a ball so that your opponent(对手) can not hit it. As you see, if the ball had not been invented, there would have been no sport.
Actually, that is not quite true. Athletics(田径)isn’t played with a ball, nor horse racing. Perhaps that is why they are not as popular as football!
1. ______ is the most popular sport in England.| A．Basketball | B．Football | C．Golf | D．Tennis |
| A．the first | B．the second | C．the third | D．the fourth |
| A．They are too busy. |
| B．They prefers to be thin. |
| C．They would rather be fat. |
| D．They like watching sport on TV. |
| A．That Englishmen like ball games. |
| B．That Englishmen have their football team. |
| C．That football is played on Saturday afternoon. |
| D．That there are four divisions of the football league. |
9 . Teenagers’ fitness is now a major concern，and physical exercise is very important. It reduces stress and improves fitness. Exercise makes your body strong，and helps you to keep the right body weight. Sports scientist Dr. Helen Lopez offers the following advice to teenagers：“First，you need to find out your present level of fitness. Then you can design a programme that will help you become healthier.”
Dr. Lopez suggests that there are three levels of fitness that need a change of lifestyle.“Overweight”means that the person gets very little exercise and often has a serious weight problem. “Inactive” means that the person does not join in many physical activities，but is not seriously overweight.“Active”refers to people who take part in sports and other physical activities，but do not have a high fitness level.
According to Dr. Lopez，overweight teenagers should work out to keep healthy.“Ride a bike，play volleyball or basketball for a while，and go for a twentyminute walk each day. All these will help to burn calories.”Inactive teenagers should do similar activities, but add some bending and stretching exercises, such as pushups and situps, starting with twenty of each a day.“Inactive people can take a little more exercise than overweight people because their bodies are stronger，”Dr. Lopez said. The same rule applies to active teenagers.
Dr. Lopez suggests one hour a week or more on running and other forms of intensive exercise，together with fifteen minutes a day spent on stretching and bending activities.“These are really important in order to prevent injuries,” Dr. Lopez said. Some weighttraining and other bodystrengthening exercises could also be planned in the programme in order to increase the person’s strength.
1. What can we learn from the passage?| A．Active people always have a high fitness level. |
| B．Overweight people always take more exercise. |
| C．Keeping fit means changing teenagers’ lifestyle. |
| D．Inactive teenagers are not seriously overweight. |
| A．Physical exercise can make the teenagers grow taller. |
| B．Physical exercise can help teenagers become healthier. |
| C．Physical exercise can help to burn up calories. |
| D．Physical exercise can increase teenagers’ strength. |
| A．walking exercises | B．streching and bending |
| C．riding | D．weighttraining |
| A．Doing Exercise |
| B．Teenagers’ Fitness |
| C．Different Lifestyles |
| D．Overweight Teenagers |
10 . All over the world people enjoy sports. Sports help to keep people healthy and happy, and to live longer.
Some sports or game go back thousands of years, like running or jumping. Chinese Kungfu, for example, has a very long history. But basketball and volleyball are rather new. Neither one is a hundred years old yet.
People from different countries may not be able to understand each other, but after a game together they often become good friends.
| A．And think of people in cold countries. |
| B．Sports help to train a person’s character. |
| C．People aren’t inventing new sports or games. |
| D．Many people like to watch others play games. |
| E．People are inventing new sports or games all the time. |
| F．Some sports are so interesting that people everywhere take part in them. |
| G．Not a few people participate in different sports competitions themselves. |
