What are the Olympic Games?

The modern Olympic Games, also called the Olympics, are     1     international athletic competition of sporting events between athletes representing their country.

There are two related but separate events     2     (call) the Olympic Games,     3     are usually called the Winter Olympics and the Summer Olympics. The Winter Games feature winter sports,     4     (include) figure skating, skiing, snowboarding, and many others. The Summer Games feature traditionally warm weather and indoor sports, like track and field, swimming, and basketball, among many others.

The Olympic Games are sometimes referred to as the Olympiad or the Games of the Olympiad, often with the number of the current event. For example, the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo will be known as the Games of the XXXII Olympiad. The event is also     5     (common) referred to with the name of the host city, as in the Tokyo Olympics. Athletes who compete     6     the Olympic Games are called Olympians.

At the Olympic Games, the top three finishers in each event     7     (award) Olympic medals: gold for first place, silver for     8     (two) place, and bronze for third place. Because the Olympic Games often feature the     9    (good) athletes in the world, winning a medal-or even competing-in them is considered one of the highest athletic     10     (achieve).

The ancient Xi’an held China’s 14th National Games in September.     1     (be) the capital of 13 dynasties (朝代) throughout Chinese history, the ancient city has never been far from sports. Starting from the Western Zhou Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty (618—907),     2     city has held many sports events. Cuju, the origin (起源) of modern football, was an ancient Chinese     3     (compete) game requiring kicking a ball into a net.

    4     (describe) as a form of entertainment among the public, Cuju first appeared in the ancient Chinese historical work Zhan Guo Ce (Strategies of the Warring States). In this period, people played the game     5     fun. Later, Cuju was     6     (usual) played in the army for military training purposes during the Han Dynasty. Emperor Hangaozu Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Western Han Dynasty not only liked watching Cuju games, but always tried his footwork on the playground. Liu Che, emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty,     7     was crazy about Cuju, would build a Cuju field wherever his army went. He used Cuju as a way     8     (train) soldiers. The     9     (early) record of women Cuju players can date back to the Han Dynasty.

As a way of national culture protection, Cuju     10     (list) into the first group of China’s intangible cultural heritages (非物质文化遗产) in 2006.

Chen Xi was chosen as the best athlete in the school. He is giving a speech at a ceremony.

Thank you for choosing me as the best athlete in our school. I’m really happy    1    (share) with you how passionate I am about sports and what I do to keep fit. I am a big fan of many sports,     2    (include) basketball, football and gymnastics. I love to watch these    3    (event) on TV at the weekend. I also exercise regularly, too.     4    the morning, I often go jogging on running track for about half an hour. I don’t run too fast or for too long so    5     I have enough energy for the day. In the afternoon, I     6    (usual) play football or basketball. I’m on the school football team. The training is always tough, but we all do    7     (we) best, since we all want to earn a place on the team when playing against other schools. Believe it or not, we also occasionally do yoga in the gym. It     8     (help) relax our muscles and focus our minds. If you want to become fit and healthy, my    9    (advise) is to try different sports and activities to see    10    one you enjoy the most.

Wearing wristbands with the names of LeBron James and Kobe Bryant     1     (write) on them, 17-year-old Tibetan girl Cigla plays her favorite sport — basketball — at Nagqu No 2 Senior High School in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region. For her,     2       (study) in Lhasa, the region’s most developed city, has made it much     3     (easy) for her to realize her basketball dream.

With     4       average altitude of over 4,500 meters, Nagqu is among the most uninhabitable places in Tibet.     5     have long compromised the health of Nagqu students are low-oxygen environment and extreme weather. “The students had barely played any sports due to     6       (limit) sports facilities and frequent bad weather in Nagqu.” said Bachug, the school's physical education teacher.

However, in a bid to ensure equal access     7     quality education, in recent years, the Tibet regional government     8       (establish) several schools in Lhasa to recruit Nagqu students. Like Cigla, many Nagqu students are from poor farming and herding families. The school     9       (campus) in Lhasa have seven concrete basketball courts, a standard soccer field and a sports stadium, which gives students opportunities     10       (train) their bodies and find the sport that appeals to them.

As winter vacation     1    （approach），many teenagers are planning their holiday work-out schedule．It seems like teens have realized that exercise is one of the easiest and most     2    （benefit）ways that they can be energetic and protect themselves     3    a number of diseases when growing old．

There are a wide range of sports teens can do．    4    （improve）heart and lung efficiency, jogging and swimming sound like smart     5    （choose）．When doing strength training like pull-ups and weightlifting，one’s muscle strength is increased，and bones get developed．Besides，teens can take courses     6    （design）for young people，including boxing or Hip-Pop dancing．

Apart from doing sports     7    are suitable for teens，a balanced diet and adequate sleep     8    （be）also significant．Since it takes both a strong body and sound mind to     9    （full）realize one’s potential，please take full advantage of this winter vacation，    10    recharge your battery for the new term!

Tree-climbing class takes root in Hubei

Recently, a tree-climbing class has grown popular among students at the Sport Institute of Hubei University．

At a class on Monday, Lu Junpei showed 16 students some of     1     most important techniques．After     2     (put) on a helmet, fastening straps and tying rope knots, Lu spent less than eight minutes reaching the top of a 25-meter tree     3     (easy) ．

Student Zhu Jinhan climbed up the trunk and then     4     the help of ropes, he jumped to a neighbouring tree,     5     won bursts of applause(掌声)．

“I     6     (grow) up in an area with a lot of mountains and trees and I liked climbing trees when I was a kid,” said Zhu．Tree climbing is not only a sport, but a way to help others, Zhu said, who is also a member of the Enshi Blue Sky Rescue Team．

Because more and more students are showing interest, the school plans to add     7    (many) seats to the class to allow more students     8     (learn) and practice．

Hubei University is one of the first     9     (university) in China to include courses on tree climbing．Teachers and students at the university won two golds     10     two silvers at the Hong Kong Tree Climbing Championship in 2017．