PBS高端访谈:72岁的举重选手震惊世界

 　　Finally, to our NewsHour Shares, something that caught our eye that might be of interest to you as well.

　　Staying in shape is difficult for many people, no matter their age. But one Virginia grandmother is raising the bar, literally¹.

　　The NewsHour's Julia Griffin has this profile. Commissioner² of revenue's office.

　　Between the phone calls and family photos, you would be forgiven for thinking Linda Leightley is your average government employee easing toward retirement³.

　　But as her co-worker Becky McNaughton at City Hall in Fairfax, Virginia, knows, Leightley isn't the type to take anything easy.

　　The first or second day I worked here, Linda came into my office, and she asked me to check out her butt⁴.

　　Because it was very, very solid. And that is how I met her and found out she was a powerlifter.

　　At age 72, not only is Leightley a competitive powerlifter; she's a record- setting one at that.

　　I have set several world records, which I'm really proud of.

　　Leightley competes in 100% RAW, a worldwide powerlifting organization that emphasizes clean, steroid-free competitions.

　　Since 2014, she's garnered⁵ 12 world records in her age and weight categories; 132-pound Leightley can dead-lift 273 pounds.

　　But she wasn't always so in shape. In 2006, after years of shuttling three children and six grandchildren to their athletic⁶ activities, she finally got her own itch⁷ to work out.

　　I was 60, and I was very sluggish⁸. And I said, you know, I really need to do something for me.

　　Blaine Dulin is Leightley's personal trainer and coach.

　　She was a disaster when I got her. The first time we exercised, she almost fell over doing a lunge.

　　But Leightley stuck with it, and within a year, she lost 40 pounds and found a love for weight lifting along the way.

　　Every once in awhile, he'd say, well, do you want to stay here or do you want to lift higher?

　　And I would say, I want to lift higher, because it felt so good.

　　Soon, her strength was getting noticed.

　　One day, she — I think she was picking up 220 pounds when she was 68. Somebody mentioned, does she compete or whatever?

　　And I looked it up. And the world record was, I believe, 232. And I thought, well, why not? If you want to, why not give it a go?

　　Expectations and preconceptions were broken at that first competition.

　　There was another gal⁹ from the gym there. And she said: "Don't worry about it.

　　Whatever you do, it's a success because you are here for the first time. Don't worry about it if you fail."

　　And I looked at her and I said, "I don't have any intention of failing."

　　She set a world record then, and has set at least one every other meet since.

　　The key to Leightley's sustained success, Dulin says, is making sure each lift is done correctly and safely.

　　I hate to yell at somebody's grandmother, but I have yelled at somebody's grandmother for picking up weight improperly¹⁰,

　　because, if she gets hurt, we're done for months, maybe indefinitely. So I go out of my way to try to make sure she does everything right.

　　At most events, Leightley is often the only person her age, or even close to it. That, says her daughters Colleen and Mary Beth, is what crowds find so inspiring.

　　To see how all these young 20-, 30-something-year-olds were cheering for my mom, who is in her 70s, that was really neat.

　　We always say she's the strongest woman that we know, and it's literally and figuratively.

　　For her part, Leightley is just glad to show that age is no restriction¹¹ when it comes to physical fitness.

　　Some of the younger lifters, female lifters come over, and they say, you are role model to us. This is the goal we'd like to have as we get a little bit older.

　　That's really an amazing compliment.

　　A compliment that might just top her long list of accomplishments¹².

　　For the PBS NewsHour, I'm Julia Griffin in Fairfax, Virginia.

　　I love that her name is Leightley. What an amazing woman. undefined

1 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

2 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

3 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

4 butt   

n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶

参考例句：

• The water butt catches the overflow from this pipe.大水桶盛接管子里流出的东西。
• He was the butt of their jokes.他是他们的笑柄。

5 garnered   

v.收集并（通常）贮藏（某物），取得，获得( garner的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith gradually garnered a national reputation as a financial expert. 史密斯先生逐渐赢得全国金融专家的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals. 他的提议得到了广泛的支持。 来自辞典例句

6 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

7 itch   

n.痒，渴望，疥癣；vi.发痒，渴望

参考例句：

• Shylock has an itch for money.夏洛克渴望发财。
• He had an itch on his back.他背部发痒。

8 sluggish   

adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的

参考例句：

• This humid heat makes you feel rather sluggish.这种湿热的天气使人感到懒洋洋的。
• Circulation is much more sluggish in the feet than in the hands.脚部的循环比手部的循环缓慢得多。

9 gal   

n.姑娘，少女

参考例句：

• We decided to go with the gal from Merrill.我们决定和那个从梅里尔来的女孩合作。
• What's the name of the gal? 这个妞叫什么？

10 improperly   

不正确地，不适当地

参考例句：

• Of course it was acting improperly. 这样做就是不对嘛！
• He is trying to improperly influence a witness. 他在试图误导证人。

11 restriction   

n.限制，约束

参考例句：

• The park is open to the public without restriction.这个公园对公众开放，没有任何限制。
• The 30 mph speed restriction applies in all built-up areas.每小时限速30英里适用于所有建筑物聚集区。

12 accomplishments   

n.造诣；完成( accomplishment的名词复数 )；技能；成绩；成就

参考例句：

• It was one of the President's greatest accomplishments. 那是总统最伟大的成就之一。
• Among her accomplishments were sewing,cooking,playing the piano and dancing. 她的才能包括缝纫、烹调、弹钢琴和跳舞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》