英语听力—环球英语 1300 Philippe Croizon’s Amazing Swim

 　　Voice 1

 

　　Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Robin² Basselin.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　And I’m Bruce Gulland. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand - no matter where in the world they live.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Philippe Croizon is swimming in very cold water. The sea is dark. The waves are high. He is in the far north, in the Bering Strait³. Finally, he reaches dry land. It has been the most difficult swim in his life. But he has completed it. He has crossed the seas separating⁴ five continents.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　It is a major success for anyone. But it is an even greater success for Philippe Croizon. Croizon has no arms, and no legs! Today’s Spotlight is on Philippe Croizon. His achievements show that we can all achieve great things - no matter who we are.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Philippe Croizon was 26 years old when he had an accident. He was working to fix a television wire. He climbed on top of his house. But a power line touched him. And he received a severe⁵ electric shock. Twenty minutes later, a neighbour found him. Croizon was burned very badly. The doctors tried to save his arms and legs. But they could not. The doctors had to remove both of his arms and both of his legs. They left parts of both arms and legs - but not enough to walk, or use his arms. Croizon had been a healthy young man. But he was now disabled. Talking about this much later, Croizon told the BBC⁶:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　‘When they cut off my last leg I wanted to die. I suffered great depression⁷. My spirit was as low as you can get. But you have to choose - and I chose to live!’

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　While he was recovering in hospital, Croizon saw a television programme. It was about a woman who had been swimming across the English Channel. This is the sea that separates⁸ France from England. After watching the programme Croizon wondered:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　‘Could I do that? Could I swim the English Channel? I do not know why, but I could not stop thinking about it.”

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　He decided⁹ to do it. It would take two years to prepare - and it would be a lot hard work. He began to exercise every day to make him strong. And he spent a lot of time in water. He used special equipment to act as his hands and feet. The equipment attached¹⁰ to his stumps¹¹ - what remained of his arms and legs. This helped him to push against the water and swim. He would swim for about five hours every day.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Finally in 2010, Croizon was ready. He entered the cold, grey sea of the English Channel. He was now 42 years old. It took him from early morning until night to swim the distance. He felt a lot of pain. But he had become the first person without arms and legs to swim between France and England. Croizon had achieved his dream. But he did not stop there. He looked for a new goal.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Early in 2012 he announced a new project. It was called the Intercontinental Straits¹² Swimming Challenge¹³. He planned to swim across the seas that join five major continents. His friend, Arnaud Chassery, would join him. Chassery was experienced¹⁴ in swimming long distances. The two men trained hard together. They worked as a team. Croizon told the BBC:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　‘When it comes to training Arnaud has to put my special equipment on me. On land I am just a big baby. But a big part of this project is the way we unite. What I do, Arnaud does. What he does, I do. We remove what makes us different. In the water we are the same. We are both human.’

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　During the next few months the two men swam many kilometres. They swam between the four continents of Australia, Asia, Africa and Europe. And finally they swam in the cold, cold waters of the Bering Strait between America and Russia. This swim was between the continents of Asia and the Americas. Croizon and Chassery had successfully¹⁵ completed the project. They had swum between five continents. Croizon hopes his success will change attitudes. He wants people to have better attitudes towards those who are disabled. He told the BBC:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　‘We want to show people something. If disabled people have courage and a lot of training they can do the same things as those who are not disabled’

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Croizon has encouraged many people. But one of them is special to him. It is his son, Gregory. Gregory is 17. He was born two months after his father’s accident. He told the BBC:

 

　　Voice 4

 

　　‘I am very proud of my father. He is amazing. My father is a big example to me. He is showing me that everyone can achieve great things. I have severe dyslexia. This means¹⁶ I find it very difficult to write and read. But I see that my father managed to swim the English Channel. And so I think: I will fight for it! I will work hard at school and I will make it! And it is working. Since last year I have received only good results. I am top of my class.’

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Those who support disabled people hope Croizon’s success will have an effect all around the world. Elizabeth MacNairn leads Handicap¹⁷ International. It is an organization that helps disabled people. This organisation¹⁸ supported Croizon’s swimming project. MacNairn wrote about Philippe Croizon in The Huffington Post:

 

　　Voice 5

 

　　‘The swim gives him a chance to show the world the many things that disabled people can do. They can take risks too. Philippe is changing the way people think about being disabled. I hope that someone living with a disability will see news of his swim and think, why not me?’

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Philippe Croizon worked hard to show that disabled people can do amazing things. He told AFP that he wanted to encourage other disabled people:

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　‘I tell them: 'Everything is possible. Everything can be done.’ We are all equal - disabled and non-disabled people on all continents.’

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　The writer of this programme was Alan Harris. The producer was Nick Mangeolles. The voices you heard were from the United¹⁹ Kingdom and the United States. All quotes²⁰ were adapted for this programme and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this programme again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net. This programme is called ‘Philippe Croizon’s Amazing Swim’.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　You can also leave your comments on our website. Or you can email us at [email protected]. You can also find us on Facebook - just search for spotlightradio. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight programme. Goodbye.

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 strait   

n.海峡，困难；adj.困难的，窘迫的，狭窄的

参考例句：

• The sea narrows into a strait.海变窄形成海峡。
• The ship passed through the strait between two islands.船从两岛之间的海峡穿过。

4 separating   

adj.分开[离，裂]的v.分开( separate的现在分词 )；（使）分离；区分；隔开

参考例句：

• In ancient mythology there was no impassable gulf separating the divine from the human beings. 在上古神话中，神与人之间没有不可逾越的鸿沟。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Once again, the key is separating the storage and retrieval systems. 关键是分离存储系统和检索系统。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

5 severe   

adj.严格的，凶猛的，严肃的，严重的，严厉的，朴素的

参考例句：

• The severe storm did for most of the crops.猛烈的暴风雨毁掉了大部分庄稼。
• The pace was too severe to be kept up for long.跟上这步伐太难了，无法持久。

6 BBC   

abbr.（=British Broadcasting Corporation）英国广播公司

参考例句：

• She works for the BBC.她为英国广播公司工作。
• The BBC was founded in 1922.英国广播公司建于1922年。

7 depression   

n.压抑，抑制，沮丧；萧条，衰退

参考例句：

• During a depression money circulates slowly.在商业萧条时期，货币流通滞缓。
• He suffers from acute depression.他患有严重的忧郁症。

8 separates   

n.可搭配穿着的女服v.分开( separate的第三人称单数 )；（使）分离；区分；隔开

参考例句：

• A chasm separates my generation from my parents'. 分歧使我这一代人不同于我父母那一代。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Bering StraIt'separates Asia and America. 白令海峡隔开了亚洲和美洲。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 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。

10 attached   

附加的

参考例句：

• The lease entitles the holder to use the buildings and any land attached thereto.本租约持有人有权使用此建筑物以及所附属的土地。

11 stumps   

（被砍下的树的）树桩( stump的名词复数 )； 残肢； （板球三柱门的）柱； 残余部分

参考例句：

• Rocks and stumps supplied the place of chairs at the picnic. 野餐时石头和树桩都充当了椅子。
• If you don't stir your stumps, Tom, you'll be late for school again. 汤姆，如果你不快走，上学又要迟到了。

12 straits   

n.困难，窘境

参考例句：

• Now that father's lost his job, we're in dire straits. 父亲失业了，我们陷入了极大的困境。
• She has been in great straits (financially) since her husband died. 自从她丈夫去世，她（在经济方面）一直处于困境。

13 challenge   

n.挑战；v.向...挑战

参考例句：

• The job doesn't really challenge him.这项工作不能真正地考验他。
• She looked at me with challenge.她带着挑战的目光看着我。

14 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

15 successfully   

adv.圆满地；顺利地；成功地

参考例句：

• The meeting passed off successfully.会议开得很成功。
• At last we successfully put through the business deal.最终我们成功地完成了这桩交易。

16 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

17 handicap   

n.障碍（身体或智力方面的），缺陷；vt.妨碍

参考例句：

• Losing our best player was a handicap to the team.失去最棒的运动员对我队不利。
• His physical handicap prevented him from standing.因为他身体残废，无法站立。

18 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

19 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

20 quotes   

v.引用，援引( quote的第三人称单数 )；报价；引述；为（股票、黄金或外汇）报价

参考例句：

• He quotes a few verses from Tennyson in his paper. 他在论文中引用了英国诗人丁尼生的几行诗句。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He quotes (from) the Bible to support his beliefs. 他引用圣经来支持自己的信念。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》