*Read the passage, then choose the best answer
Completing a marathon is considered very difficult, many coaches believe that it is possible for anyone who is willing to put in the time and effort. Obviously, most participants do not run a marathon to win. More important for most runners is their personal finish time and their placement within their specific age group and gender. Another very important goal is to break certain time barriers. For example, ambitious recreational first-timers often try to run the marathon under 4 hours; more competitive runners will attempt to run under 3 hours. Many runners then prefer to finish for example in 3:29:59, which makes them " sub-3:30h marathoners ", instead of 3:30:01.
For most runners, the marathon is the longest run they have ever attempted. Many coaches believe that the most important element in marathon training is the long run. Recreational runners commonly try to reach a maximum of about 20 miles in their longest weekly run and about 40 miles a week in total when training for the marathon. More experienced marathoners may run a longer distance. During marathon training, adequate recovery time is crucial. If fatigue or pain is felt, it is recommended to take a kreak for a couple of days or more to let the body heal. Overtraining is a condition that results from not getting enough rest to allow the body to recover from difficult training. It can actually result in a lower endurance and speed and place a runner at a greater risk of injury.
1. Marathon completion is ______________ .
A. impossible B. easy C. not very difficult D. very difficult
2. One of the important goals in a marathon competition is __________ .
A. breaking time barriers B. age
C. gender D. reaching the finish
3. In marathon training, the most important is ____________ .
A. the age B. the coaches' belief
C. the long run D. the recreation
4. If the marathon runner feels tired or has a pain, _________.
A. he should continue the training B. he should quit running forever
C. it is time for him to stop his training D. he should take a break for several days
5. Overtraining may lead to _________ .
A. good results B. long endurance C. injury D. recovery
III. Read the passage and do the tasks that follow
1. A beauty contest is a competition based mainly, though not always entirely , on the physical beauty of its contestants. But it doesn’t involve of their personalities , and questions they answer and how they answer them . Almost invariably, competitions for men and women are separate events, and those for men are not referred to as beauty contests . Beauty contests for women are more common , and winners are called beauty queens. Beauty contests for men , like Mr. Universe, are more likely to be “body building” contests quite unlike the traditional “beauty contests” in which women are judged upon many attributes both physical and otherwise . However, in the 1990s, male “beauty contests” began to shift focus. Instead of only considering muscle mass, the competitions began to judge the natural physical attributes of the contestants as well as their physiques. These include Mr. World and Manhunt International.
* a. Decide whether the statements are T (true) or F (false)
1. All beauty contests are based on the beauty of contestants
2. There are “beauty contests” for men
b. Answer the questions
1. What is a beauty contest based mainly on ?
2. What do we call the women who win in the beauty contests ?
3. When did the male “beauty contests” begin to shift focus ?
IV. Read the passage and fill in each blank with a suitable word.
The London Marathon is one of the best known long distance races in the world. Some of the (1)............................famous long – distance runners have completed in it. But (2)...........................makes it different from many other great sporting events is (3) .......................fact that ordinary people can (4)...............................part along side international stars.
The race was the idea of Chris Brasher, a former Olympic athlete . In 1979, friends told him about the New York Marathon, during (5)........................the runners are encouraged to carry (6)..........................to the end of the course by the enthusiastic shouts of the spectators. He flew to the USA to run in the race (7)............................was so impressed by (8)..............................that he decided to organize a similar event in Britain. Many problems (9).......................to be overcome before the first London Marathon took place in 1981. Chris Brasher still takes a keen interest in the event, even though he is no (10) ....................... organizer.
1- most 2- what 3- the 4 – take 5- which 6- on 7- and 8- it 9- had/ needed/ were 10 -longer
