英语听力精选进阶版 6362（在线收听）

Have you ever raced against a horse, charmed worms or smashed an egg against your head?

These wacky activities are amongst the sports taking place in the World Alternative Games in the Welsh town of Llanwrtyd Wells. You might not see the likes of Usain Bolt around, but those who take part are extremely dedicated and compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in 35 events.

Gordon Green, who is involved in organising the games, says: "We've been staging a number of events since 1980, but we wanted an alternative to the Olympics to show that people who take part in unusual sports are as committed as their Olympic counterparts. (...) They may not train as hard, but they have easily as much fun."

Let's take a look at some of the weird and wonderful disciplines that are hosted. In the man-versus-horse race, men race against horses across the Welsh countryside. Predictably, the horses usually win, although men have won twice in the past.

Russian egg roulette is less dangerous and more quirky that the sport its name derives from. Competitors smash eggs against their heads: all the eggs are raw except one. Whoever gets the hard-boiled egg is the winner.

Worm charmers produce vibrations with a garden fork and a piece of metal or wood to entice worms to come out of the ground. The World Record was set by ten-year-old Sophie Smith in 2009, when she collected 567 worms in just 30 minutes.

Those with extraordinary strength might want to take part in wife carrying, where competitors carry another person - who may not be their wife and can be of the same sex - across a river and fields. The prize for the winner is the weight of the person they carried in beer.

Other off-the-wall games are stiletto racing, where competitors race in 3-inch high heels, running backwards, underwater hockey and bog snorkelling.

So if what's missing in your life is a grain of folly, you might want to consider taking part. All you need is dedication, an eccentric streak and a penchant for ridicule.

Quiz 测验

Read the article and find as many adjectives as possible that have a similar meaning to 'eccentric'.

Wacky, unusual, weird and wonderful, quirky, off-the-wall.

Is the following statement true, false or not given? You might see Usain Bolt taking part in the World Alternative Games.

False. Although you won't see athletes like Usain Bolt in these alternative games, the competitors are still very dedicated to these quirky sports.

What does the man-versus-horse race involve?

It involves people competing against horses by racing across the countryside.

Is the following statement true, false or not given? Worm charmers play music to entice worms to the surface.

False. They use a garden fork and a piece of metal or wood to create vibrations.

What does the winner of a wife-carrying race receive?

The winner receives beer - the amount is equivalent to the weight of the person they carry.

Glossary 词汇表

wacky 古怪的

alternative 另类的，非主流的

unusual 不寻常的

weird and wonderful 怪异但又精彩的

Russian egg roulette 俄罗斯蛋轮盘赌

quirky 古怪的

a worm charmer 一个蠕虫诱导训练师

extraordinary 非凡的

off-the-wall 异乎寻常的

stiletto 细高跟鞋

bog snorkelling 沼泽潜水

a grain of folly 有点愚蠢，做蠢事

an eccentric streak 趋向古怪的性格 （性格有些刁钻古怪）

a penchant for ridicule 喜欢捉弄嘲笑