Winning the silver medal at the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Nations League in Arlington, the United States, on Sunday, the Chinese women’s volleyball team enjoyed their best result in the tournament (联赛), with the key to the breakthrough being their unity and never-say-die spirit.
“I just feel that our team is more united than ever,” said Yuan Xinyue, Team China captain. “We support and help each other on the court. This is the most important reason behind our success. We don’t want to put pressure on individual athletes. All of us should stand out on the court and shoulder the responsibility of winning.”
She continued to say, “The two-month journey has ended, and it’s great to stand on the top of the hill. We have firm determination, and we will keep moving forward. We cherish the road that we have walked. We will summarize events, and we will keep tackling the problems. We will also try hard and hold onto our dreams and the belief that the Chinese women’s volleyball team can be the best.”
Team China was one step away from gold, but the Turkish women’s team showed greater momentum (势头) in the final beating China 3-1 (25-22, 22-25, 25-19, 25-16). As the Chinese team only finished sixth at last year’s VNL, the second-place finish was a surprise to domestic fans.
Sunday’s final attracted huge media attention and generated a series of trending topics on social media. One example, the hashtag (标签) “Chinese women’s volleyball team vs Turkish team”, had been viewed more than 1 billion times on Weibo by Monday morning. While many engaged in heated discussion about the final, many more expressed congratulations on the fast rise of the young women’s team.
“Although the Chinese women’s team wasn’t able to stand on the highest podium (领奖台) at the Volleyball Nations League, they still produced the best possible result by fighting together. Hand in hand, Team China players march forward together,” read a commentary by China Sports Daily. “Team China was not among the favorites to reach the final of the VNL, but the team still managed to pocket a silver medal, which is huge progress compared to last year’s result. They proved all the doubters wrong, and they showed the world what a united team they are.”
12. Which can replace the underlined word “tackling” in paragraph 3?
A.Checking out. | B.Bringing about. | C.Giving up. | D.Dealing with. |
13. What is the theme of paragraph 5?
A.Large numbers of people were concerned with Team China. |
B.Team China played very hard in the tournament. |
C.Why Team China made so much progress. |
D.How Team China lost the final. |
14. How can we best describe Team China in terms of their performance in the tournament?
A.Shy. | B.United. | C.Annoyed. | D.Careless. |
15. What can be the best title for the news report?
A.Rising stars shine in silver medal success |
B.Team China not among favorites to reach final |
C.Chinese women’s volleyball team plays against Turkish team |
D.Every member of Team China shoulders responsibility of winning |