VOA标准英语2010年-Documentary: Increasing Awareness for

57-year-old Geoffrey Erickson has been determined¹ to overcome limitations ever since a motorcycle accident put him in a wheelchair 33 years ago. He is one of the main characters in the film.

Americans this year are marking the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disability Act - also called the ADA - a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on mental or physical disabilities.  One event in the celebration was a recent film Festival which highlighted a documentary film called "Unbeaten,"  a story about the world's longest and toughest wheelchair race.

Racing² in a wheelchair is challenging enough.  But racing 430 kilometers, through mountains, would seem to be nearly impossible.  That is why 57-year-old Geoffrey Erickson wanted to participate. "It is kind of funny.  When I got out of the hospital, people were trying to tell me what I couldn't do and just setting up limits all over the places," he says, "You got kind of maddening."

Erickson has been determined to overcome those limits ever since a motorcycle accident put him in a wheelchair 33 years ago.   He is one of the main characters in the film. 

Unbeaten follows 31 paraplegics for six days - as they compete in wheelchairs and hand cycles in what is known as the toughest road race in the world.   The course winds 430 kilometers through the mountain passes between Fairbanks and Anchorage, Alaska.

 

"When I was pushing up the hill, it was just painful," he says, "I had to just try to stay focused.  It was just brutal³.  I still can remember the pain. I hurt my shoulders and the back, my arms, everywhere."

The film takes viewers along as the racers grind out some 88 kilometers per day   

For many of the participants, it is a journey of self-discovery, of strength and a demonstration⁴ of will and determination.

Midway through, the film shifts its focus, as the filmmaker follows the elite⁵ racers of the U.S. Paralympics squad⁶ in their quest to medal at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics.  Oscar "Oz" Sanchez, a US Marine⁷ veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, is a current Paralympics gold medalist.

Oscar 'Oz' Sanchez, a US Marine veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, is the current Paralympics gold medalist.

"Being a gold medalist and being a world champion, it sets a standard that what you believe you can achieve no matter what is your alleged⁸ limitations are.  Just because you have a disability does not mean your goals and your dreams have to change," Sanchez said.  "You just find a different means to attain⁹ those goals. That's all."

Filmmaker and director Steven C. Barber says it was a three-year odyssey¹⁰ to finish the documentary. "We think somebody in a wheelchair is helpless and it is absolutely the opposite.  I mean 55 miles [88.5 kilometers] a day in a wheelchair, that's amazing even though these guys are the elite, elite of the wheelchair world.  People in wheelchairs don't have disabilities, they actually have ability," he said. "I learned that just because somebody is in a wheelchair doesn't mean that they are disabled."

Barber says Unbeaten is both a tribute to heroism¹¹ and a message of hope to countless¹² disabled individuals worldwide.  He says the paraplegics show the world what can be done, and that the words "disabled and "obstacle" are only that… words.

 

1 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

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 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

4 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

5 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

6 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

7 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

8 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

9 attain   

vt.达到，获得，完成

参考例句：

• I used the scientific method to attain this end. 我用科学的方法来达到这一目的。
• His painstaking to attain his goal in life is praiseworthy. 他为实现人生目标所下的苦功是值得称赞的。

10 odyssey   

n.长途冒险旅行；一连串的冒险

参考例句：

• The march to Travnik was the final stretch of a 16-hour odyssey.去特拉夫尼克的这段路是长达16小时艰险旅行的最后一程。
• His odyssey of passion, friendship,love,and revenge was now finished.他的热情、友谊、爱情和复仇的漫长历程，到此结束了。

11 heroism   

n.大无畏精神，英勇

参考例句：

• He received a medal for his heroism.他由于英勇而获得一枚奖章。
• Stories of his heroism resounded through the country.他的英雄故事传遍全国。

12 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。