1 . Kurt, one of Australian most respected and recognized athletes, has won over 40 marathons, including New York, Chicago and London, in his career of more than 20 years. He became the first athlete with a disability to win The Don Award-given to honor those whose achievements inspire the whole nation — in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2018.

Kurt has always been determined. Being born without the lower part of his spine (脊椎) has never held him back, from backyard games of football to crewing an attractive Sydney to Hobart ship and winning dozens of marathons around the world.

Growing up in a large and loving family in the small town of Carcoar, Kurt was encouraged to make the most of every opportunity, and he did. He took on almost every challenge presented to him, encouraged by his parents. He even managed to move himself on his elbows up and down hills at an early age.

Turning his attention to wheelchair sports in his teens, Kurt quickly became a world beater. He started his career with two silver medals at the 2000 Sydney Paralympic Games, before making his winning breakthrough at the 2004 Athens Paralympics with gold medals in the 5,000m and marathon races. Following the 2004 Paralympics, Kurt conquered the world, winning seven world championships and more than 30 marathons around the globe.

Kurt is a person who supports the rights of people with disabilities. He throws himself into a number of charitable activities. For example, in 2009, Kurt spent two weeks crawling (爬) the 96 kilometer Kokoda Track to raise awareness and money for people’s health charity.

While Kurt’s athletic career is over, his commitment (投入) to sports and support for people with disabilities live on in so many different forms. Kurt believes that people with disabilities should be given more opportunities.

1. What does paragraph 1 tell us about Kurt?

A．He contributed a lot to American spirit.	B．He is the most popular marathon athlete.
C．He is the first athlete to win the Don Award.	D．He is a disabled athlete with great achievements.

2. What can we learn from paragraph 3?

A．Kurt’s living conditions were poor.	B．Kurt’s parents were strict with him.
C．Kurt’s tough life inspired his creation.	D．Kurt’s childhood saw his determination.

3. Who will benefit from Kurt’s charitable activities probably?

A．A sick teenager.

B．A blind boy.

C．An injured athlete.

D．A potential champion.

4. What does Kurt’s story tell us?

A．Learn to walk before your run.	B．Ups and downs make one strong.
C．Become the light and warm others.	D．Disability is a force for great progress.

2 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

A Chinese swimmer has made history again. Last week, Qin Haiyang,    1     won all the 23 gold medals in the men’s breaststroke (蛙泳),     2     (award) as the Best Male Swimmer of the Year 2023 of World Aquatics in Budapest, Hungary. This    3     (recognize) came just a day after he secured the Swimming World Cup Overall Male Award.     4     (amazing), at the championships in Fukuoka, the 24-year old broke the Asian record five times and became the first swimmer in history    5     (earn) all three breaststroke titles at a single edition of the event.

Chinese swimming in men’s breaststroke events was hardly talked about    6    the sudden appearance of Qin. Before him, China’s    7     (late) achievement in the men’s 100m breaststroke even was made by Qi Lieyun when he beat the word record in 1957. Qin’s winning in Fukuoka has filled a 66-year gap    8    China’s history. In breaststroke    9    almost all the movements are underwater, swimmers required high technical skills. “Even    10    slight difference in the angle of your palms is likely to affect your speed in the water,” Qin told Jimu News.

3 . On Sunday, Tigst Assefa of Ethiopia shocked the running world by breaking the women’s world record for the marathon by over two minutes. Assefa finished the Berlin Marathon in just 2 hours, 11 minutes, and 53 seconds.

But Assefa’s record was far beyond what most people expected. After all, it was only her third time running a marathon.

“I wanted to break the marathon world record,” she said, “But I couldn’t imagine that it would result in a time under 2:12.”

When Assefa was younger, she started by running short races, called sprints. Then she became a middle-distance runner, running the 800 meters (half mile) race. Her best time in the 800 meters was 1 minute and 59 seconds.

Last March, she ran her first marathon. Then last September, she entered the Berlin Marathon. She won, and set a new women’s record for the course, finishing in 2:15:37.

This year, she ran almost four minutes faster than she did last year. In both races, Assefa ran faster in the second half of the race than she did in the first half.

Her time of 2:11:53 was over two minutes faster than the old women’s record (2:14:04), which was set in Chicago in 2019 by Brigid Kosgei of Kenya.

When she finished the race, Assefa kneeled down and kissed the pavement before raising her arms in victory.

Though Assefa made it look easy, she said winning the race “…was the result of hard work.” Assefa was coached by Gemedu Dedefo, who has helped train many Ethiopian star runners.

1. What is Assefa’s latest record for the marathon?

A．2:11:53.

B．2:14:04.

C．2:15:37.

D．1:59:00.

2. What does Assefa think of her victory?

A．It is what she expected.	B．It is a piece of cake for her.
C．It is due to great effort.	D．It is because of her coach.

3. Which word best describes Tigst Assefa as a runner?

A．Talented.

B．Friendly.

C．Humorous.

D．Warm-hearted.

4. Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?

A．Dedefo Helps to Train Many Star Runners

B．Kosgei Holds the Women’s Marathon Record

C．Assefa Sets a Good Example to Other Runners

D．Assefa Breaks the Women’s Marathon Record

5 . Zheng Qinwen announced herself as a major new force in women’s tennis with an import French Open debut (首秀) last month. Now the Chinese teenager hopes the fighting spirit she showed at the Grand Slam (大满贯) tournament can encourage kids starting out in the sport to chase their dreams on the court with the same determination.

“If tennis is your dream, I think you always have to fight for your dream. Because we only have one life, you shouldn’t have any regrets,” Zheng said last week in an interview.

The 19-year-old showed she possesses the talent to be a contender at the very top level of tennis with a breakout campaign at French Open.

Accounting for two-time Grand Slam winner Simona Halep along the way, Zhengs journey was ended in the fourth round by a three-set defeat to eventual champion Iga Swiatek. Zheng, though gave the Polish world No. 1 a big scare, battling back from 3-0 down in the first set to force, and win, a tiebreak (平分决胜局)。

“That was the first time I had played the world No.1, so I really wanted to grab this chance so I could judge her level and test myself,” said Zheng. “I didn’t want to give her the match so easy like that. It was pretty difficult for me to hold on in that match because of what my body was going through, but I wanted to show her I'm not easily beaten.

Looking back at Zheng Qinwen’s performances in this year’s French Open, there’s no doubt that she’s a true fighter. Zheng says she avoids being discouraged by higher-ranked opponents by simply focusing on the next point, one shot at a time.Supported by her team, she hopes she can one day win a Grand Slam title.

Zheng’s impressive French Open run has inevitably led to comparisons with China’s solitary Grand Slam singles championLi Na, who won the 2011 French Open and 2014 Australian Open titles.

“When I was a kid, Li Na showed that Asian people also can do something really good in tennis. She was the first one. I will just focus on my own game and then let’s see if I can really compete at the highest level,” said Zheng.

1. What does the underlined word “contender” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Organizer.

B．Announcer.

C．Competitor.

D．Designer.

2. What is the result of the match between Zheng and Iga Swiatek?

A．Iga Swiatek beat Zheng easily.

B．Zheng lost to Iga Swiatek at last.

C．Zheng won the match despite her pain.

D．Iga Swiatek lost because of her mistakes.

3. Why is Li Na mentioned in paragraph 7?

A．To explain why Li Na has achieved a lot

B．To prove failure is the mother of success.

C．To show how excellent Zheng Qinwen is.

D．To compare the difference between Zheng Qinwen and LI Na

4. Which of the following can best describe Zheng Qinwen?

A．Optimistic and generous.

B．Struggling and determined

C．Independent and helpful.

D．Adventurous and realistic.

6 . 阅读下面短文, 在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

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.