1 . After winning the 100-meter dash at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in August, 26-year-old sprinter (短跑运动员) Noah Lyles was named “World’s Fastest Man”. Now he has his ____ set on winning more medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Lyles, the son of two former runners, grew up in Alexandria, Virginia. He began ______ as a sprinter when he was a teenager and dreamed of going to the Olympics. He ______ for a spot (排名位置) on the US Olympic team in 2016 but did not ______. Fortunately, in 2021, he ______ the US team for the Tokyo Games and won a bronze medal in the 200-meter race.

Lyles has been ______ with legendary Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, who has held the same ____   “World’s Fastest Man”. Bolt won the 100 meter and 200 meter races at the World Championships and still holds the ___in the 200 meter with a time of 19. 19 seconds, set in 2009. Lyles’ best time for that race is 19.31, and he said his _____ is to run it in 19.10 seconds, which would break Bolt’s record. Lyles said that he did not ______ top runners like Bolt as idols (偶像) while growing up. “I believed in myself and in learning something from _____people, because everyone has their own advantage,” he said.

After his win, Lyles said he felt that his years of training and patience have finally ______. In Paris next year, Lyles hopes to win more golds.   “If I got three gold medals at the World Championships, maybe I have the ______ to get three gold medals at the Olympics,” he said. His another expectation is to make track and field more _____ and accessible to a large number of people. “I’m trying to make sure that everybody comes and ______ the sport,” he said.

1.

A．sights

B．opinions

C．predictions

D．demands

2.

A．advertising

B．competing

C．defending

D．debating

3.

A．looked

B．answered

C．accounted

D．tried

4.

A．quit

B．respond

C．qualify

D．regret

5.

A．made

B．created

C．refused

D．recommended

6.

A．combined

B．replaced

C．blessed

D．compared

7.

A．dream

B．standard

C．title

D．talent

8.

A．passion

B．record

C．feature

D．belief

9.

A．responsibility

B．suggestion

C．solution

D．goal

10.

A．copy

B．view

C．recall

D．serve

11.

A．different

B．famous

C．gifted

D．determined.

12.

A．ran out

B．paid off

C．came back

D．sped up

13.

A．potential

B．honor

C．pressure

D．option

14.

A．flexible

B．stable

C．formal

D．popular

15.

A．reports

B．evaluates

C．enjoys

D．improves

2 . 4 Free Poetry Contests to Enter in 2023

Here you’ll find free poetry contests that’ll help you grow as beginners and support your writing career at the same time.

Blue Mountain Arts Poetry Contest

Deadline: January 3, 2023

Submission requirements: It’s a poetry contest where submitted poems can be rhyming (押韵) or non-rhyming. There’s no limited entries. Winners will be contacted within 45 days of the deadline date. Published as well as unpublished works are accepted.

Prize: First Prize — $350; Second prize — $200; Third prize — $100.

In addition, the winning poems will be displayed on its website.

Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest

Deadline: April 2, 2023

Submission requirements: Held by WINNING WRITERS, this poetry contest seeks today’s best humor poems. Submission should be of maximum of 250 lines. There’s no age restriction to the contest. Published as well as unpublished works are accepted.

Prize: First Prize — $2,000 plus a two-year gift certificate from our co-sponsor, Duotrope (a $100 value); Second Prize — $500; Third Prize — $100.

Alpine Fellowship Poetry Contest

Deadline: January 1, 2023

Submission requirements: Applicants must be aged 18 or above with all entries in English. A single poem or a collection of poems is accepted at a time with maximum of 500 words per entry. Published as well as unpublished works are accepted.

Prize: First prize — £3,000 cash; Second prize — £2,000 travel expense; Third place — £1,000 travel expense.

Poet Lore Contest

Deadline: April 1, 2023

Submission requirements: They accept 5 poems (maximum 10 pages) in 1 single document. They do not accept works that have been previously published.

Prize: First Prize — $1,500; Second Prize — $750; Third Prize — $500.

1. Where can you see your works if you win the Blue Mountain Arts Poetry Contest?

A．On its website.

B．In a newspaper.

C．In a poetry book.

D．On a gift card.

2. Which contest offers a travel expense as a prize?

A．Blue Mountain Arts Poetry Contest.	B．Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest.
C．Alpine Fellowship Poetry Contest.	D．Poet Lore Contest.

3. What’s special about Poet Lore Contest?

A．It has a line limit on works.	B．It only accepts unpublished works.
C．It has no age limit for participants.	D．It has the latest deadline.

3 . 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。

Pan Junfan, a one-legged man from East China’s Wenling City, sets a new world record in an extreme hiking competition through the Gobi Desert in Northwest China’s Gansu Province.

The 40-year-old     1     (lose) the lower part of his right leg in a traffic accident in 2015,     2    was a turning point in his life. He said although the accident was a terrible experience, it turned him into a     3     (total) different person, a tougher man.

    4     (inspire) by a video of extreme hiking, he set up a goal for himself — to complete an extreme hiking race one year later in the Gobi Desert. Intensive training helped him gradually adapt     5    the fast walking and running. In 2016, he took part in an extreme hiking competition and became     6     first amputee (被截肢者) to complete the entire journey. “I hope that by completing the challenge I can inspire people and tell them that life has limitless possibilities and not to stop     7     (try) something different,” Pan says. Since then, he has gone on to break multiple world    8     (record) as an amputee in extreme hiking. His     9     (determine) has encouraged many people in the whole world     10     (find) opportunity in difficulty.

4 . 阅读下面材料, 在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

From manufacturing, brand marketing to cultural derivatives(衍生品), Chinese elements abound(大量存在)     1     on and off the field of the FIFA World Cup Qalar 2022, the Shanghai Securities News reported on Monday.

China Railvay Construction Corporation     2     (design)and built one of the Qatar World Cup’s main stadiums. Lusail Stadium, which is the     3     (large)and most advanced one among professional soccer stadiums     4     (build) by Chinese enterprises. Jiang Xiaoxiao, consultancy director at CIC said that, in recent years, Chinese companies     5     (explore) eagerly the overseas market.     6     (specific)speaking, China’s international engineering industry saw rapid     7     (grow) with a broad connection to the world economy,

The Al-Qasar 800-megawatt photovoltaic plant(800兆瓦光伏电站)designed and built by the Power Construction Corporation of China has been put into operation,     8     (provide) green energy to the World Cup. China Energy Engineering Corporation and China Gezhouba Group took part in constructing the super large impounding reservoir(蓄水池), offering clear drinking water to the World Cup. China’s new energy industry is taking a leading position in    9     (innovate) and production. The small products made in China are popular in the world     10     their higher quality and lower price.

5 . 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。

The FIFA World Cup 2022 kicks     1     on Sunday with a ceremony at the Al Bayt Stadium in the city of Al Khor, 50 kilometres outside of Qatar’s capital Doha.

Enner Valencia scored two first-half goals as Ecuador beat hosts Qatar 2-0 in the opening match. It’s the first time that a host team     2     (lose) the opening game of the World Cup.

Even without a home team to cheer for, Chinese fans and enterprises remain     3     (enthusiasm) about the Qatar World Cup. Support from China has also come in     4     more concrete way, with most of the tournament’s stadiums, its     5     (accommodate) facilities and its official transportation system     6     (feature) contributions from Chinese builders and providers. For example, the 80, 000-seat Lusail Stadium,     7     is scheduled to host the eye-catching final game, was designed and built by China Railway International Group with advanced energy-saving     8     (technology) and sustainable materials. Besides, Doha’s first ever Panda House officially opened to the public on Thursday.     9     (locate) at Al Khor Park near the Al Bayt Stadium, the Panda House is home to Chinese giant pandas, three-year-old female Si Hai and four-year-old male Jing Jing. And according to a list released by FIFA; Chinese referee Ma Ning and two     10     (assist) referees, Cao Yi and Shi Xiang, have been appointed to judge at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

6 . 电竞运动越来越受到年轻人的喜爱，对于电竞运动能否被奥运会接纳为比赛项目，目前人们还存在很大的争议。请你根据以下要点写一篇文章并发表你的看法。
1. 反对者认为奥运会倡导和平，而电竞游戏过于暴力且易上瘾；
2. 赞成者认为它可以培养团队合作精神，提升自信心；
3. 你的看法。
注意：
1．词数100左右；
2．题目和首句已为你写好。

E-sports are getting more and more popular with young people.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . During the Tokyo Olympic Games, Sunisa Lee won her first gold medal as the youngest member of the 2020 US women’s Olympics gymnastics team. _________ she finished the Games, Lee continued to perfect her _________ as a member of Auburn University’s gymnastics team. Like most Olympic athletes, this 18-year-old was _________ trying to challenge herself.

For Lee, that included _________ a surprisingly difficult move called The Nabieva. It was _________ after the woman, Tatiana Olegovna Nabieva, who introduced the move. It _________ “laying out vertically over the high bar, swinging around, and then passing over the bar backwards before grabbing (抓住) it again”. It was _________ a “G”, which was the _________ rating (等级) on the difficulty scale.

In fact, The Nabieva had only been _________ by the NCAA Code of Points for college competitions just three days before Lee gave it a __________. Fortunately, this gymnastics superstar didn’t need much __________ to decide whether or not to include it in her __________. Before the move got approved at the college level, she had already __________ it three times a day! However, there was still a lot of __________ when it came time for Lee to perform because the __________ between Auburn and the competing team, Kentucky, were very close.

Excitedly, Lee __________ all 10 scores on the beam (平衡木). Soon after, the moment that she had been __________ to perform The Nabieva finally arrival. As soon as Lee safely landed on the ground, the crowd went wild knowing that they had just __________ gymnasium history! And these __________ performance pat Auburn over the top with a 197. 925-197. 150 win over Kentucky.

Lee has already proven she’s a force that shouldn’t be __________, and we can’t wait to watch as she continues to grow!

1.

A．If

B．Unless

C．Before

D．After

2.

A．theories

B．trials

C．kills

D．efforts

3.

A．finally

B．constantly

C．sincerely

D．shortly

4.

A．perfecting

B．controlling

C．balancing

D．commandeering

5.

A．looked

B．taken

C．run

D．named

6.

A．announced

B．involved

C．collected

D．opposed

7.

A．lent

B．left

C．given

D．brought

8.

A．slowest

B．easiest

C．sharpest

D．highest

9.

A．approved

B．abused

C．touched

D．refused

10.

A．smile

B．try

C．hug

D．hand

11.

A．time

B．faith

C．teamwork

D．fortune

12.

A．hope

B．education

C．achievement

D．routine

13.

A．tested

B．consumed

C．practiced

D．joiner

14.

A．inequality

B．pressure

C．trouble

D．disagreement

15.

A．choices

B．gifts

C．targets

D．scores

16.

A．earned

B．removed

C．noticed

D．delayed

17.

A．depending on

B．wiping out

C．waiting for

D．putting forward

18.

A．witnessed

B．made

C．started

D．acknowledged

19.

A．royal

B．excellent

C．unconscious

D．traditional

20.

A．supported

B．promoted

C．ignored

D．admired

8 . Sports day! These two words can inspire both joy and terror in the hearts of students everywhere. For many, sports day can be a great day of fun and the chance to bag a prize or two.     1    

Today, more and more schools have recognized the importance of exercise.     2     They hope that by making sports days less competitive, children of all abilities will be motivated to take part without fear of losing. Exercise and fitness is important for everyone, no matter how good at sport you are.     3    

However, some people feel that it’s important that sport has winners and that learning to lose is just as important as learning how to win.     4     Particularly, on a sports day which is your chance to really prove yourself!

There are lots of people who agree with the idea—parents in particular! According to a 2017 survey by Families Online, 82% of parents say they prefer “traditional” competitive sports days.     5     It’s also an opportunity for some children to show off their physical and sporting skills.

People have different ideas about whether it is the winning or the taking part that counts when it comes to school sports days. So, should School Sports Day be competitive or not? We want to know your ideas.

A．What’s the point if no one wins?

B．Should sport just be about winning?

C．Many of them have “non-competitive” sports days.

D．Everyone should be celebrated for trying and playing their part.

E．Many adults are worried that their kids can get injured when doing sports.

F．For others, it might feel like having to take part in something they aren’t good at.

G．Many adults feel that children can learn valuable lessons in both winning and losing.

9 . Skiing has been around since early civilization, evidenced by a 5,000-year-old rock carving representing men on skis hunting deer in Norway, and the discovery of a ski dating back to 6000 B.C. found in Vis, Russia. Historians debate where skiing first got its start, though; some argue that it was in Altay, China, in 8000 B.C.

Modern skiing, however, can date back to the Scandinavians, who mainly used skis as a means of travel or for other practical purposes, particularly the Indigenous Sámi people in Norway, Finland, and Sweden, writes Raymond Flower in The History of Skiing and Other Winter Sports. Norse myths (挪威神话) even described Ull, a winter god, on skis with curved tips and included other stories of heroes and goddesses skiing down mountains.

Some of the first official competitions began around 1850 in Norway, with the first recorded race in Sweden held outside Stockholm in 1879. Skiing became a household word with the publication of the popular book offering a thrilling account of Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen’s difficult and historic journey on skis across Greenland in 1888.

The sport spread to the Swiss Alps, where it was enjoyed largely by British vacationers, before clubs popped up around the world in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Variations of the sport developed over the years, such as the slalom race (障碍滑雪), downhill jumping, and mountaineering. The British are largely credited with transforming skiing from its Scandinavian roots into the highly competitive sport it is now. In 1921, they developed rules that became widely accepted and adjusted the slalom race to include flag gates to test the skill of skiers’ turns.

Skiing then exploded in popularity after World War II, when ski resorts (胜地) gradually developed to receive single-day skiers as well as those taking longer vacations.

1. What can we learn about Raymond Flower?

A．He wrote about skiing.	B．He invented skiing.
C．He recorded Norse myths.	D．He was good at rock carving.

2. Why did skiing become a well-known word in the late 1800’s?

A．Some official competitions were held.	B．The British spread it all over the world.
C．It was written in the textbook on history.	D．An adventure book about skiing came out.

3. Who contributed most in changing skiing to a more competitive sport?

A．The Swiss.

B．The British.

C．The Norse.

D．The Finn.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．How Did Skiing Develop in Norway?	B．Why Did People Kill Time by Skiing?
C．What Are Skiing Adventures All About?	D．What Are the Ancient Origins of Skiing?

10 . 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。

The Chinese team     1     (total) won 18 gold medals, 20 silvers and 23 bronzes at Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games,     2     (rank) first in both the gold count and the overall medal count at the Games. It is the first time in the history that the Chinese team     3     (achieve) such a good result in the Games.     4     among the 96 Chinese athletes, 85 participants whose average age is 25 took part in the Games for the first time, they made history. Given the fact that China won its first Winter Paralympic gold medal at the 2018 Winter Games, the nation has surprised the world.

If Beijing 2018 started a new chapter of growth for the Paralympics, then Beijing 2022 has marked a new dawn for the Paralympic Winter Games, according     5     International Paralympic Committee Andrew Parsons at the closing ceremony.

“We hope the great     6     (perform) of the Chinese athletes at the Beijing Winter Paralympics will encourage more people with disabilities     7     (get) out of their homes and do sports. And through sports, they can     8     (involve) in our society,” said Chairman Xi.

Chairman Xi added, “To host a successful Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics is a solemn (庄严的) commitment of China. China will organize a safe and splendid Olympic Games     9     offers a stage for winter sport athletes from around the world to pursue sporting excellence. This will not only help achieve     10     goal of building a healthy China, but also inject confidence and strength into the COVID-19-plagued world.”