1 . Poetry Writing Contest
Contest information
Deadline: November 30th
Results: Announced on December 31st
Prizes: Win $ 1,600 in prize money
Guest judges: Ken Liu, Brian Evenson, and Faylita Hicks
Entry requirements
Your poetry can be laid out as you wish, as we understand that form often relates to the effect of a poem. However, please be sure to stick to a maximum of 3 pages per poem.
Submission guidelines
We accept works, written in English, from anywhere in the world. But we don’t accept works previously published elsewhere.
Writers over the age of thirteen are welcome to participate. Please note that if you’re aged 13-16 and your work is selected for publication, we’ll require a signature from a parent or a guardian.
Please include your name and contact information in your cover letter only and remove any identifying information from both the submitted work and the file name.
We edit every piece accepted for publication whether your work is selected for publication through our online blog or in our print magazine. For this cooperative process we’ll pair you with one of our senior editors. All our editors have been trained to help guide the development of each piece to reach its fullest potential in keeping with the author’s vision. This doesn’t mean we’ll take on a wild jumble of words and half-formed thoughts.
Notes
The contest reserves the right to NOT award a winner if the submissions don’t reach a publishable standard. In this case, the winner won’t be announced. Although this has rarely come to pass in our six-year publishing history, our top priority must remain with the quality of the work we publish.
1. What do you have to avoid in order to participate in the contest?| A．Writing a 3-page-long poem. |
| B．Writing your work in English. |
| C．Providing your contact information. |
| D．Submitting your entry after November 30th. |
| A．It is held on an annual basis. |
| B．It is intended for teenagers only. |
| C．It is open to global poetry lovers. |
| D．It is aimed at making poetry more popular. |
| A．Make sure that it is original. |
| B．Polish it as you’re required to. |
| C．Go to receive the prize on time. |
| D．Give your permission to publish it. |
2 . Table tennis may not seem a reasonable option for someone with no arms — but Ibrahim Hamadtou doesn't believe in limits. The 48-year-old Egyptian Paralympian breaks the barrier by holding the paddle (球拍) in his mouth and using his right foot to serve the ball.
Hamadtou, who lost his arms in a train accident at the age of ten, was drawn to table tennis after being challenged by a friend. "I was once watching a match between two of my friends," Hamadtou explains. "They disagreed on a point, When I counted the point in favor of one of them, the other player told me, 'Mind your own business as you will never be able to play.' It was that statement that fired me up to decide to play table tennis."
It took Hamadtou three years to master the sport. He says the biggest challenge was figuring out the best way to control his body. "I was trying first to use the bat under the arm, and I also tried using other things, which weren't working so well. Finally, I tried using my mouth. It took me nearly a year of practice to get used to holding the paddle with my mouth and making the serve. With practice and playing regularly, this skill was improved."
The Egyptian's incredible talent came to light in 2014 when he was awarded the best Arab Athlete of the year. He won a silver medal at the 2016 African Championships, qualified for his first Paralympics in 2016 at 43, and then again for the 2020 Tokyo Games at 48.
The inspiring athlete says, "The disability is not in arms or legs but to give up in whatever you would like to do."
1. What made Hamadtou take up table tennis?| A．His passion for table-tennis. | B．His ambition to prove himself. |
| C．His willingness to inspire others. | D．His suffering in a train accident. |
| A．Serving the ball with his mouth. | B．Holding the paddle under his arm. |
| C．Practicing strengthening his muscles. | D．Playing the game with the right body parts. |
| A．He was recognized as a gifted player at 41. |
| B．He was awarded the best athlete in Africa. |
| C．He won a medal in the 2020 Tokyo Games. |
| D．He realized his dream of winning a gold medal. |
| A．Well begun is half done. | B．Love breaks down barriers. |
| C．Success gives people delight. | D．Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. |
3 . Alysa Liu is an ice skater. In 2016, the then 10-year-old girl became the youngest intermediate figure skating （花样滑冰）champion in U.S. history. In 2018, Liu became the youngest to compete in and win the U.S. junior championships.
In January, 2019, she made history again at the Geico U.S. Women's Figure Skating Championships. At the championships, things were initially going well for the defending U.S. champion Bradie Tennell. But later Tennell had a falling in her performance. Meanwhile, Liu became the first and youngest U.S. woman to land three triple axels （三周半跳）in competition.
Though Liu made them look, easy, triple axels are extremely challenging. The skater has to jump from the outside edge of one skate, turning in the air. "Double" or “triple" refers to the number of rotations （旋转）the skater completes before landing. The term is a little misleading given that the skater has to do an extra half rotation, meaning that for a triple, the skater is actually completing 3.5 rotations. To be successful, the skater has to have both incredible body strength and control.
When asked about her great performance, Liu thought it was not worth showing off. And she was enthusiastic about preparing for bigger games. But Liu was ineligible to compete at the 2019 World Figure Skating Championships in Japan due to the minimum age requirement of 15. However, that didn't bother her.
Liu fell in love with ice skating during her first lesson at a center. She showed such talent that Laura Lipetsky, who was teaching the group lessons, asked her father to let her receive private lessons. Lipetsky said, “She wanted to learn, and I wanted to guide." The two have been inseparable since then. In 2017 Laura sent Liu to the University of Delaware for a certain analysis that researchers have created to help outstanding American skaters improve their jump techniques.
Liu has been homeschooled since the age of 10. She gets her homework done between daily practices, and usually eats dinner in the car on her way home. Though that might appear to be a lot for someone so young, Liu takes it happily.
1. What achievement did Alysa make at the age of 13?| A．She won the U.S. junior championships. |
| B．She was allowed to compete in the 2019 championships in Japan. |
| C．She became an intermediate figure skating champion. |
| D．She defeated the defending U.S. champion Bradie Tennell. |
| A．The requirements for figure skating. |
| B．The difficulty of carrying out triple axels. |
| C．The skills needed in skating rotations. |
| D．The differences between double axels and triple axels. |
| A．Lacking time. | B．Lacking confidence. |
| C．Having no qualification. | D．Showing little enthusiasm. |
| A．She was good at teaching group lessons. |
| B．She instructed Liu's father in figure skating. |
| C．She made a contribution in Liu's progress in sports. |
| D．She obtained great support from Liu and her father. |
