[00:05.38]Lesson 33 1 Dialogue
[00:10.84]Sharon is a gymnast.She is at the doctor's.
[00:16.12]DOCTOR:Good morning.What can I do for you?
[00:21.08]SHARON:There's something wrong with my left shoulder.
[00:25.52]I hurt it while I was doing gym.I've got a pain here too.
[00:31.87]DOCTOR:Let me take a look at your shoulder.Where does it hurt?
[00:37.15]SHARON:Here and here.And I can only move my arm as much as this.
[00:44.51]DOCTOR:Mmm,I see.It feels a bit tense.What happened exactly?
[00:56.87]SHARON:I was doing some exercises on the high-and-low bars.
[01:02.51]When I landed,I fell forward and hurt myself.
[01:07.97]Someone was standing too close
[01:11.92]and I knocked into him and fell over onto my shoulder.
[01:16.67]DOCTR:It's nothing serious.I think you've been very fortunate.
[01:22.02]Have you ever used the hotcloth -and-froxen-peas treatment?
[01:27.38]SHARON:Frozen peas?No!
[01:31.64]DOCTOR:It's quite simple.
[01:34.59]You put a very hot,wet cloth on your shoulder for one minute.
[01:40.55]Then put a packet of frozen peas on the shoulder for one minute.
[01:46.00]And so on and so on.
[01:49.53]SHARON:What does that do?
[01:52.69]DOCTOR:The change between hot and cold temperatures
[01:57.73]makes the blood move around the shoulder
[02:01.99]and the damaged parts begin to repair themselves.
[02:06.75]SHARON:That sounds very interesting!
[02:10.40]I'll buy some frozen peas at the supermarket on my way home
[02:16.05]DOCTOR:Use this treatment twice a day for a week.
[02:20.30]And another thing,at the end of the week,throw the frozen peas away.
[02:26.36]They won't be fit to eat.
[02:29.92]Lesson 34
[02:38.69]2 Reading comprehension
[02:43.06]GYMNASTICS
[02:46.50]The words"gymnastics"and"gym"come from the Greek language,
[02:52.67]for it was in Greece that Olympic competitions started.
[02:58.31]There are also records of gymnastics being performed in China
[03:04.19]and some other Asian countries.Modern gymnastics began in the nineteenth century
[03:12.05]In 1811 an outdoor gymnastics centre for men was opened in Berlin
[03:19.99]where they could do body-building
[03:23.47]and exercises on a high bar and other pieces of equipnent.
[03:29.53]At the same time,gymnastics,without equipment,
[03:35.38]was developed in Sweden as a keep-fit programme for schools.
[03:42.04]Dance is an important part of training
[03:47.00]as it prepares you for the types of movements required in gymnastics.
[03:53.85]One of the aims is to make the body stronger for jumps and turns
[04:00.20]and for movements of balance.It also helps your body bend forwards,
[04:07.28]backwards and sideways,and improves the way you hold your body.
[04:13.65]In competitions women perform some of their exercises to music,
[04:20.18]so dance,gymnastics and music are all connected.
[04:27.55]To become a top gymnast,it is important to start when very young.
[04:34.31]In fact,most gymnasts start with simple exercises
[04:40.97]while they are still at kindergarten.
[04:45.02]Girls are already performing in competitions by the age of ten,
[04:50.95]and Olympic medals are often won by fourteen-or fifteen-year-old girls.
[04:58.53]Boys develop physically later than girls and so Olympic gymnastics medals
[05:06.57]are usually won by men between the ages of nineteen and twenty-five.
[05:13.23]Some pieces of equipment,for example the rings,
[05:19.01]require great physical strength
[05:23.16]and boys need to develop their bodies fully before attempting such difficult exercises.
[05:30.61]In competitions,gymnasts have to perform on different pieces of equipment.
[05:38.26]All gymnasts perform on the floor and jump over a "horse"with four legs.
[05:45.03]Gymnasts have to show that they can move neatly and eadily,
[05:50.38]hold a position steady,keep their balance while doing a handstand,
[05:57.33]and jump both forwards and backwards.
[06:02.50]Only men perform on the rings,on the double bars,on the high bar
[06:09.87]and on a type of "horse"with four legs
[06:15.01]which has two handles fixed to the top surface.
[06:21.05]Only women perform on the high-and-low bars,
[06:27.21]one of which is higher than the other,and the"beam",
[06:32.96]which is a length of wood only four inches wide
[06:37.82]which is fixed at a height if 1.20 metres above the ground.
[06:43.77]Both men and women do floor exercises on the mat.
[06:49.23]Ther are a few simple safety measures to follow while training.
[06:54.69]1 It is important always to work with a trainer.
[07:00.94]Training by yourself in a gym can be highly dangerous.
[07:06.58]2 Make sure you take off any watches,rings or necklaces before youstart.
[07:14.73]3 Wear tight clothing without collars or belts
[07:21.10]so that it doesn't catch on any of the equipment.
[07:25.86]4 Look after your health and do not practise if you are unwell or have any injury.
[07:34.40]Lesson 35
[07:43.36]1 Reading comprehension
[07:47.12]A GYMNASTICS COMPETITION
[07:51.38]It was a Sunday in October and Zhou Lan was performing in her first competition.
[07:58.75]Some of the other gymnasts had performed frequently in competitions,
[08:04.81]but this did not worry Zhou Lan.
[08:08.78]She was just content to do her best in this,her first competition.
[08:15.44]Before the competition started,the girls chatted with each other.
[08:21.60]Some of them had come from different towns
[08:26.36]and were not used to being away from home.
[08:31.11]Zhor Lan started talking to one of them
[08:35.37]and soon they were getting on well together.
[08:40.02]As soon as the competition started,there was no more time for talk.
[08:46.79]They each had to perform on three pieces of equipment as well as the floor.
[08:53.55]Zhor Lan did well and made no serious mistakes.
[08:59.11]Finally it was time for her performance on the high-and-low bars.
[09:05.28]She stood below them and waited.
[09:09.04]Then she looked at the judges,one of them nodded and she began.
[09:15.52]She jumped upwards,caught the high bar in both hands and did a neat circle.
[09:22.78]In all,she gave a very good performance
[09:27.75]and landed neatly and steadily on the floor at the end.
[09:32.32]All the people watching clapped.It was clear that she had done well.
[09:39.45]Zhou Lan glanced at the judges who were busy writing on their mark sheets.
[09:45.98]She thought she had done fairly well,but she didn't think she had won.
[09:51.86]She went back to the bench to join the other gymnasts
[09:57.42]and sat down next to her new friend.
[10:01.50]After a long wait,the results were announced,and Zhou Lan was first.
[10:08.16]Victory for Zhou Lan!She had gained more points than anyone else.
[10:15.52]Everyone cheered and clapped and her fellow gymnasts came up to congratrlate her.
[10:22.79]She was delighted and very proud.
[10:27.75]The first thing she did was go up to her trainer
[10:32.92]and thank her for all her help during her thraining |