Cuju     1     (develop) in ancient China and was played with a leather ball. It is considered by FIFA as the     2     (early) form of football. During the Han Dynasty, the popularity of Cuju spread from the army to the royal courts and the upper classes. It is said that Emperor Wu of Han enjoyed the sport and Cuju     3     (match) were often held inside the imperial palace.

Cuju was further developed     4     the Tang Dynasty. There were dozens of well-organized Cuju leagues in Chang’an,     5     was then the capital of the Empire. The rules, fields and facilities for Cuju became more advanced, for example, balls     6     (fill) with air and Cuju goals appeared during this period.     7     was also during this age that similar games were being played in Japan, and     8     (gradual) worldwide.

Cuju was most developed during the Song Dynasty because of the social and economic development. At that time,     9    (profession) Cuju players were quite popular. They fell into two groups: One was trained by and performed for the royal courts and the other included talented civilians who made a     10     (live) as Cuju players.

Lifting a spear, Li Jinqi pulled it across her shoulders and spun (旋转) it     1     (quick). Following her example     2     (be) ten peers in two rows (排) who wore the same Kungfu — style garments (服装) and produced the same movements.

Li is a 24-year-old Ph.D. Student at Bei hang University in Beijing,     3     she is more widely known on campus as a martial arts master and led the university’s martial arts club. Despite being busy with research and coursework (课程作业), the Ph.D. student said     4     (practise) martial arts has become a daily routine for herself over the past five years. She has studied various styles, boxing and swordplay (击剑)     5     (include), and won several cross — campus martial arts competitions held in the capital city

Gao Xiaoya, majoring in electronic information engineering at Beihang, who also joined the martial arts club,     6     (share) that she draws inner peace and strength from the sport. Gao is     7     the many young people who were first attracted to martial arts as a way to keep fit, but who found that their     8     (enthusiastic) grew as they practiced more.

“The rapid growth of the Internet and social media also facilitates communication about traditional Chinese culture, enabling young people to have     9     (easy) access to rare art forms,” said Song Yu,     10     assistant researcher at the Institute of Sociology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The name of the Paris 2024 mascot (吉祥物) is Olympic Phryge. It is shaped after the     1     (tradition) small Phrygian caps. The name and design were chosen     2     (represent) symbolic figures of the French Republic. The Olympic Phryge is decorated     3     blue, white and red, with the golden Paris 2024 emblem (徽章) clearly     4     (print) on it.

The Phrygian caps that the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic mascots are based on     5     (be) a symbol of freedom since ancient times. They are     6     (repeated) used as a common reference for French people. Phrygian caps can be seen on the head of the figure Marianne in every town hall and even feature on everyday     7     (object) in France such as coins and stamps. They are an international symbol of freedom,     8     (appear) on different emblems in North and South America.

    9     motto (格言) of the Olympic Phryge and Paralympic Phryge is: “Alone we go faster, but together we go further,”     10     stands for the ways that the mascots and the people of the world can make each other better by working side-by-side.

The opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games took place at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province on September 23rd. A total of 886 athletes participated in the ceremony, among     1    , 36 are Olympic champions. The entry of the Chinese team was accompanied by a breathtaking visual representation of the motherland’s mountains and rivers.     2     impressed the audiences most was the digital human in the torch-lighting ceremony.

The ceremony was     3     amazing display of Chinese culture and innovation and also a feast for the senses,     4     stunning visuals, innovative     5     (perform), and a moving tribute (致敬) to the history and culture of Asia. It was themed “Memories of Jiangnan”, using the element of water to showcase the region’s     6     (nature) beauty and cultural charm. Netizens were captivated by the display of Chinese aesthetics (中国美学)     7     (exhibit) at the opening ceremony.

President Xi said China looks forward to working     8     (close) together with the Olympic Council of Asia and delegations (代表团) from all countries and regions to deliver to the world a great event that is distinctly Chinese as well as     9     (unique) Asian. It is certain that China     10     (make) new contributions to the Olympic Movement in the world in the future.

As the capital of 13 dynasties throughout Chinese history. Xi’an has never been far from sports. Since the Western Zhou Dynasty, the city     1    (hold) many sports events, such as cuju.

Cuju was     2    ancient Chinese competitive game involving kicking a ball through an opening. As the ancestor of soccer, it first appeared in the ancient Chinese historical work Zhan Guo Ce, in which cuju     3    (describe) as one of amusement among the general public.

Later, cuju was     4    (common) played in the army during the Han Dynasty. Emperor Hangaozu Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Western Han Dynasty, liked both watching cuju games     5    playing cuju on the playground. Liu Che, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty,     6    was crazy about cuju, would set up a cuju field wherever his army went. He used cuju as a way of     7    (train) soldiers.

The     8    (early) record of women cuju players dates back to the Han Dynasty. We can see from the paintings that females with their hair     9    (tie), were playing cuju elegantly.

    10    (protect) this precious national culture, the Chinese government put it into the first batch of China’s intangible cultural heritage in 2006.

It seems that the old tradition of children getting a bedtime story before sleeping is disappearing in Britain. A new study shows that around a third of parents do not read bedtime stories to their children. The study, from British online retailer (零售商) Littlewoods.com, also found that up     1     50 per cent of children would prefer to watch TV or play computer games than be read a story. Researchers further discovered that five per cent of British under-sevens do not even own     2     book. Parents came up with     3     (vary) reasons why they did not read to their little children. The researchers questioned hundreds of parents, thirteen percent of     4     blamed a lack of time. Besides, some parents said their children were     5     (simple) not interested.

Littlewoods     6     (work) with British pop star Natasha Hamilton to try and change this since last month. They have launched a bedtime story writing     7     (compete) for children under seven. Ms. Hamilton said, “I’m really excited to see all the different story ideas and can’t wait     8     (see) what the kids come up with.     9     (choose) a winner is not going to be easy.” She spoke about her own joy as a mother in reading bedtime stories, saying, “As a mom of three, I know just how enjoyable reading bedtime stories to my kids is.” A spokesman from Littlewoods.com said, “We appreciate how important     10     is for parents and kids to spend quality time together, and bedtime stories are a great way to do this.”