英语听力精选进阶版 13614

Let the Alternative Games begin

Summary

21 August 2012

The World Alternative Games are taking place in Britain's smallest town and feature 35 bizarre events from gravy¹ wrestling to stiletto racing².

Reporter:

Beth McLeod

Report

The events at the London Olympic Games might have kept millions of viewers glued to their screens, but to the inhabitants of Llanwrtyd Wells in Wales they seemed a little mundane³. 

The town is hosting its own version of the Games, which challenge competitors just that little bit extra. The sprinters have to race in three-inch high heels, the long distance runners have to go backwards⁴ and the hockey teams have to play underwater. Thousands of competitors from around the world will participate in 35 events over a two-week period. 

The town has been organising quirky sporting events for over 30 years. It all started with the man versus⁵ horse marathon – a gruelling race that pits 600 runners and 50 horses and their riders against each other over 22 miles of rugged⁶, Welsh mountain terrain⁷. The horses are generally quicker, but human runners have won on two occasions in the race's history. 

In true Olympic spirit, this year the organisers are welcoming other quirky sports from around the world, including wife carrying and Russian egg roulette – where competitors take it in turns to smash a batch⁸ of six boiled eggs against their foreheads; the loser is the unlucky one who gets the raw egg in the batch.

1 gravy   

n.肉汁；轻易得来的钱，外快

参考例句：

• You have spilled gravy on the tablecloth.你把肉汁泼到台布上了。
• The meat was swimming in gravy.肉泡在浓汁之中。

2 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

3 mundane   

adj.平凡的；尘世的；宇宙的

参考例句：

• I hope I can get an interesting job and not something mundane.我希望我可以得到的是一份有趣的工作，而不是一份平凡无奇的。
• I find it humorous sometimes that even the most mundane occurrences can have an impact on our awareness.我发现生活有时挺诙谐的，即使是最平凡的事情也能影响我们的感知。

4 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

5 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

6 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

7 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

8 batch   

n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量

参考例句：

• The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
• I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。