The ancient Olympic Games     1     (begin) the year 776 BC and died out around the year 393. Then only Greek men     2     (allow ) to participate. The modern Olympics were first held     3     1896. A Frenchman     4     (name) Pierre de Coubertin brought the Olympics back to life. The motto of the Olympics is “Faster, Higher, Stronger.”

Many remarkable Olympians have appeared, such as the boxer Cassius Clay from the USA     5     demonstrated great talent and personality and a former track and field athlete, Jessica Ennis-ill, from the UK who tells us how hard work and devotion can lead     6     sporting excellence.

China has played     7     important role in the Olympics. In 2008, China hosted the Olympic Games for the first time and it ranked first     8     the medal table. Furthermore, Beijing won the     9     (elect) to host the 2022 Winter Olympics.

The Olympic Games bring joy and excitement to people     10     the world.

When it comes to volleyball, we can’t help     1    (think) of Lang Ping. Lang Ping used to be a     2    (fame) player. Now she is also known     3     a coach. Led by her, Chinese women volleyball team won the world championship in 2019,     4     made the whole nation excited.

Lang Ping was born in Tianjin in 1960. Lang began playing volleyball as a teenager and     5    (eventual) joined the national team in 1978. Her height made     6     possible for her to play volleyball well. With time going by, Lang Ping played better and better. Lang Ping and her teammates played so well that they won champions several     7    (time) in the 1980s.

After she     8    (retire) in 1986, Lang Ping coached volleyball in Italy and America. In 1995, she returned to China to work as a coach. She was     9     busy with her work to take care of her family. In 2016 Chinese women volleyball team won a gold medal at the Olympics in Brazil. Because of the victory, Lang Ping became the first person in the volleyball     10    (win) an Olympic gold medal as both a player and a coach. And, Lang Ping and her team won another world championship in 2019 for our motherland.

As an outstanding American gymnast (体操运动员), Simone Biles has won more medals     1     any other gymnast in American history. Although Biles has made great achievements in sports, she had never received     2     college education before. But it has changed. Biles is a college student now.

Biles had planned to go to the University of California Los Angeles,     3     she could go into a classroom and listen to lessons in a traditional way, but her busy life made it nearly impossible     4     (study) full-time at a university. So she     5     (decide) to take some classes at the University of the People, an online university, which     6     (set) up by Shai Reshef, an Israeli-born businessman. It offers degree programs of different levels. Now Biles is working hard to get her first degree, and she is     7     (satisfy) with the online education though she hasn't had a traditional school experience since she went to high school. She was home-schooled during her high school years to save time for her gymnastic     8     (train) .

The school's nontraditional methods are     9     (particular) fit for Biles, and her hard-working spirit     10     (shape) her gymnastic career will help her in her studies as well.

Stephen Curry, the son of the famous basketball star Dell Curry, is also a well-known NBA basketball player in the world. He spent his childhood years     1     (practise) basketball on the     2     (mud) basketball court. However, the poor conditions helped     3     (he) develop his own playing style. He also learnt to be     4     (create) and flexible as a player. Nonetheless, for many people, it seemed unlikely that Stephen would be     5     great basketball player, because he was too short, too thin and too weak     6     follow in his father’s     7     (footstep). Despite this, Stephen never gave up, and ended up     8     (play) college ball at Davidson College, not too far from where he lived.     9     (select) for the NBA in2009, he became a member of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. In 2015, he led the Warriors to their first championship since 1975. Stephen achieved his dream through self-belief, hard work, perseverance     10    some help from an old hoop. He has proved that anything is possible as long as you try your best to do it.

Deng Yaping, one of the best table tennis players, is the first woman player     1     (win) the championships in all the international     2     (event).

In 1984, she     3     (compete) for the Henan table tennis junior championship and won     4    . However, it's a     5     (fail) for her to join Henan team because of her height. She tried to work harder and be     6     (positive) about her skills. In 1988, even     7     she won the national championship, she couldn't join the national team for the same reason. Later in November1988, Deng never gave up her ideal     8     made it finally. In 1989, she and her teammate Qiao Hong won the world championship. In 1991, Deng won the singles world championship. Those three years was the     9     (good) time for her sports life.

Deng got 18 gold medals and was the best woman player in the world for several years. After     10     (leave) the national team in 1997, she went to Tsinghua University.

At the age of 21, Chris Nikic became the first person with Down syndrome to complete the Ironman triathlon, which consisted of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run. The very thought would be enough     1    (put) off those in the greatest physical condition. However, by completing    2    challenge in 14 minutes under the official cut-off time, this sporting hero set a Guinness World Record.

This    3    (impress) accomplishment was made possible thanks to the loving guidance of Nikic’s father, Nik. While     4    (raise) Nikic, Nik was worried about his son’s inactive lifestyle, thus giving him the task of becoming 1%     5    (fit) every day. And the first step    6     (achieve) with a single push-up.

Now, three years later, Nikic has gathered much    7    (strong) and determination to really push his body to the limits. Considering those with Down syndrome have to fight varying physical and learning disabilities, Nikic’s accomplishment is another example of    8    people with this condition overcome barriers and achieve success. The key for him is resilience.

Nikic isn’t stopping there. He has set new goals for 2021, including the plan to participate    9    the special Olympics in Orlando, Florida in 2022. Undoubtedly, with his family, friends and followers by his side, Nikic     10    (continue) to set new records.