里约热内卢奥运会本周末开幕

AS IT IS 2016-08-04 Rio Olympic Games Open This Weekend 里约热内卢奥运会本周末开幕

Olympic athletes, high-level officials and other people have been arriving in Rio de Janeiro for the opening of the 2016 summer games.

The opening ceremony is Friday night, local time, but some events already started. The first medals will be awarded on Saturday.

The Rio Olympics officially begin Friday, when the Olympic torch is carried into Maracana Stadium to light the Olympic cauldron. The cauldron will stay lit for over two weeks until the closing ceremony on August 21. During that period, 301 gold medals will be awarded to the winners.

At the last summer Olympics, the 2012 London games, the United States won 46 gold medals and 104 medals in all. China was second, with 38 gold medals and a total of 88. Britain finished in third place, with Russia in fourth.

One major question this year is: How many medals will Russia win at the Rio games?

Just before the Olympics started, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) considered banning every member of Russia’s team because of a doping scandal¹.

Investigators² for the World Anti-Doping Agency³ (WADA) found evidence of Russian athletes using unapproved substances at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. And the agency accused the Russian government of being involved and covering up the activity.

But in the end, the IOC decided⁴ not to ban all 387 Russian qualifiers for the Rio games. Many Russian athletes will have a chance to compete. But most of the country’s track and field athletes were banned by the International Association⁵ of Athletics⁶ Federation⁷.

At a meeting in Rio this week, WADA and the IOC criticized⁸ each other. WADA officials said the IOC should have banned all the Russian Olympians. The IOC said WADA should have acted faster on the allegations of Russian cheating.

More than 10,000 men and women from over 200 nations will compete at Rio de Janeiro. The first medals, in men’s cycling and women’s shooting, will be awarded on Saturday. Chris Froome, who won the Tour de France last month, will be representing Britain.

American swimmer Michael Phelps has won the most Olympic medals ever. He has 22 medals, including 18 golds. He will carry the flag of the United States at the opening ceremony on Friday.

Aside from the question of which country will win the most medals, some people are worried about the health of the competitors.

Athletes are being careful about the time they spend out of doors because of concerns about the Zika virus. Zika spreads when mosquitos bite human skin. The virus is linked to microcephaly, a birth defect⁹ in which a baby’s head is smaller than the heads of other children of the same age and sex.

Olympic organizers say they are not overly concerned about Zika since the games take place during Rio de Janeiro’s winter.

Athletes competing in water events, like open-water swimming, rowing and sailing are concerned about polluted water. The Associated Press reports that those athletes run a high risk of getting sick.

Water at some of the competition areas is polluted by untreated waste water. It contains bacteria and viruses carried by human waste.

While some athletes will wear gloves or other protection, it will be hard for the open-water swimmers to keep water from getting into their mouths. Yet Olympic organizers say athletes will not get sick.

April Ross is an American beach volleyball player. She is excited about the chance to compete on the famous Copacabana beach. “I think it’s awesome¹⁰ to be playing on an actual beach,” Ross said. But medical experts have warned that even the sand from coastal¹¹ areas carries viruses.

Ross is one of 292 women on the U.S. Olympic team. The number of women on Team USA (292) is greater than the number of men (263).

Some of the strongest and most successful Americans at the games may be women. Swimmer Katie Ledecky is a world record holder¹² in two Olympic events and won the 800-meter freestyle event in London.

The USA women’s soccer team has won three gold medals in the past three summer Olympics. The women’s basketball team is trying for its sixth straight gold medal.

Women will also be part of the first-ever refugee¹³ Olympic team.

Ten athletes from countries like South Sudan, Syria, Democratic¹⁴ Republic of Congo and Ethiopia will compete under the Olympic flag.

Four of them are women, including Yusra Mardini, a Syrian refugee now living in Germany. She and her sister swam across the Aegean Sea when the motor on their boat failed late last year. She and the other refugees¹⁵ were rescued and taken to a Greek island. Mardini and her sister settled in Germany last year.

Words in This Story

dignitary – n. a person who has a high rank or an important position

medal – n. a piece of metal often in the form of a coin with designs and words in honor¹⁶ of a special event, a person, or an achievement

cauldron – n. a large pot

doping – n. the illegal use of a drug (such as a steroid) to improve an athlete's performance

qualify¹⁷ – v. to have the skills that are required or do the things that are required to become a member of a team or to be allowed in a competition

allegation – n. a statement saying that someone has done something wrong or illegal

defect – n. a problem or fault that makes someone or something not perfect: such as a : a physical problem that causes something to be less valuable, effective, healthy, etc.

athlete – n. a person who is trained in or good at sports, games, or exercises that require physical skill and strength

torch – n. a long stick with material at one end that burns brightly

1 scandal   

n.丑事，丑闻，流言蜚语，反感，愤慨

参考例句：

• Scandal and gossip are meat and drink to him.各种丑闻和流言蜚语是他最感兴趣的事。
• His theft from the shop caused scandal in the village.他因偷商店的东西引起全村的公愤。

2 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 association   

n.联盟，协会，社团；交往，联合；联想

参考例句：

• Our long association with your company has brought great benefits.我方和贵公司的长期合作带来了巨大的利益。
• I broke away from the association ten years ago.我10年前就脱离了那个团体。

6 athletics   

n.运动，体育，田径运动

参考例句：

• When I was at school I was always hopeless at athletics.我上学的时候体育十分糟糕。
• Our team tied with theirs in athletics.在田径比赛中，我们队与他们队旗鼓相当。

7 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

8 criticized   

vt.批评(criticize的过去式)v.评论，批评( criticize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The decision was criticized by environmental groups. 这个决定受到了环保团体的批评。
• The movie has been criticized for apparently legitimizing violence. 这部电影因明显地美化暴力而受到了指责。

9 defect   

n.缺点，缺陷，毛病；vi.变节，叛变

参考例句：

• I don't think the importance of this defect should be exaggerated.我认为这一缺点的重要性不应加以夸大。
• The notice shall contain a description of the defect.通知应包括对瑕疵的描述。

10 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

11 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

12 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

13 refugee   

n.难民，流亡者

参考例句：

• The refugee was condemned to a life of wandering.这个难民注定要过流浪的生活。
• The refugee is suffering for want of food and medical supplies.难民苦于缺少食物和医药用品。

14 democratic   

adj.民主的；民主主义的，有民主精神的

参考例句：

• Their country has democratic government.他们国家实行民主政体。
• He has a democratic work-style.他作风民主。

15 refugees   

n.避难者，难民( refugee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The UN has begun making airdrops of food to refugees. 联合国已开始向难民空投食物。
• They claimed they were political refugees and not economic migrants. 他们宣称自己是政治难民，不是经济移民。

16 honor   

n.光荣；敬意；荣幸；vt.给…以荣誉；尊敬

参考例句：

• I take your visit as a great honor.您的来访是我莫大的光荣。
• It is a great honor to receive that prize.能拿到那个奖是无上的光荣。

17 qualify   

vt.取得资格，有资格，限定，描述；vi.取得资格，有资格

参考例句：

• I won't qualify until next year.我明年才具备资格。
• You must qualify yourself for the post.你必须使自己具备担任这一工作的资格。