1 . Wang Shuang was just five when her parents divorced, dropped her at her uncle’s and left. Football, as it often is, became an escape.

At seven, she was spotted by coach Xu Yilong, who found Wang quick in her playful behaviour. As the only girl in the boys’ team, Wang’s performances were impressive, earning her the nickname “Iron Girl.” And soon, she sensed the sport’s power. Football allowed her to “release herself” and realize “whatever happens, football never leaves you alone.”

However, life was never smooth sailing. The constant jibes (嘲讽) from some people, who always tried to push her down and destroy her hopes, affected her so deeply that she lost confidence.” They were saying I had no talent at all. Gradually, I felt really so. “Wang once wrote. But never did she stop playing. When she was called up to the national team, aged 17,Wang thought, “Me? Are you sure?” When a world-famous club wanted to sign her, she was “excited that an excellent coach thought I was good.” It was only then that she felt confident in her abilities. “I felt recognized. Perhaps I had a bit of talent after all.”

Not any “bit of talent”; the genius is praised as China’s once-in-a-generation player.

China is a pioneer of women’s football in Asia and has won the continental championship eight times, including seven straight titles between 1986 and 1999.That was their golden age. Gradually, though, the dynasty declined. It is hoped that Wang will inspire the women’s football of the country to its former height.

Coaches are almost always hesitant to speak about individual players. But when coach Shui was asked about Wang before the match against Vietnam, she couldn’t stop mentioning her influence on the team. Unfailingly performing on the big stage, Wang did not let her team down. When they lacked a quality ball, she delivered two high assists that finally led her team into the last-four clash (交锋).

“Nobody knows how hard it was,“ declared Wang after the match. “We overcame difficulties. We also showed our strong spiritual power. I am proud of my team.”

1. What can we infer about Wang from the second paragraph?

A．She earned a living on her own.	B．She felt the power of sports.
C．She was laughed at by the boys.	D．She found a sense of belonging

2. How did Wang regain faith in her abilities?

A．By winning recognition.	B．By getting encouragement.
C．By playing in the national team.	D．By ignoring other people’s jibes.

3. Which would best describe coach Shui’s attitude to Wang?

A．Caring.

B．Unwilling.

C．Favorable.

D．Demanding

4. What’s the best title for the text?

A．Wang Shuang: A Steel Rose	B．Wang Shuang: A Child Genius
C．Wang Shuang: A Football Pioneer	D．Wang Shuang: A Golden Age Successor·

2 . Jessica Long, from Baltimore, Maryland, USA is a champion by all definitions of the word. She is one of the world’s most decorated swimmers. Jessica was the youngest athlete to win a Paralympics (残奥会) medal. But her path to becoming a champion has been anything but easy.

Jessica was born in Irkutsk, Russia with a severe and rare disease — fibular hemimelia (腓侧半肢畸形). This means that part of her leg bones was missing or abnormal. Because of that, her young mother placed her in a Russian orphanage (孤儿院), fearing she could not care for Jessica.

Fortunately, she was adopted by an American family when she was 13 months old. She required 25 different surgeries to help her leg condition. But unfortunately, both of her legs had to be removed when she was just 18 months old. Jessica learned to walk with artificial legs. As a child, she took to sports including gymnastics, cheerleading, ice skating, biking and rock climbing.

She began swimming at her grandparents’ house when she was 6. She started competitive swimming about 4 years later. She did really well in swimming. Shortly after she started competing, Jessica was selected as Maryland’s Female Swimmer of the Year with a Disability. Even though Jessica was annoyed with her physical limitations, she was encouraged to enter her first Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece. She won three gold medals in swimming at 12! But she did not rest on her success.

Jessica has gone on to win 23 medals for Team USA at the Paralympics! While she began her career out of anger and annoyance, she now has a positive force on a mission to inspire the next generation of Paralympians! Her attitude and growth have been keys to her success. Jessica always believed she could do anything. As she says, “The only disability in life is a negative attitude.”

1. What happened to Jessica when she was a baby?

A．She was abandoned in the wild.	B．She had 25 operations on her leg.
C．She had her legs cut because of a disease.	D．She was adopted by a Russian family.

2. When did Jessica begin to receive professional swimming training?

A．At the age of 4.	B．At the age of 6.
C．At the age of 10.	D．At the age of 12.

3. What can we infer about Jessica from the text?

A．She was the youngest athlete in US history.

B．She has set a good example to Paralympians.

C．She has won 23 gold medals in Paralympics.

D．She took part in several sports in Paralympics.

4. What does the author want to tell us?

A．Difficult the first time, easy the second.

B．Never hit a man when he is down.

C．A common danger causes common action.

D．Nothing is impossible to a determined heart.