Find evidence fort the following sentences in the last part of the text

a) Parkour is the development of the intellect.

b) Parkour teaches us how to find our way.

c) Inner concentration is important.

d) Amusing yourself is essential.

Answer the following questions:

a) Who invented parkour? Where?

b) What is the aim of this extreme sport?

c) Is there a specific place to practice parkour? Why?

READING

Read the text very carefully.

Extreme sports

James

I’ve been really into surfing for more than fifteen years. I started learning in England, then I began going on surfing holidays abroad with my mates – we went to Bali in Indonesia, and also South Africa.

After that I started wanting bigger challenges, so five years ago I decided to try the really big waves in Hawaii. Of course they can be dangerous and you have to concentrate one hundred percent, but it’s worth it for the thrill you get when you’re riding them. It’s a magical feeling, like flying above the ocean, and for those few seconds you totally forget everything else in your life.

Susan

Part of me had always wanted to try skydiving, but I was really scared the first time. The worst bit was just before I jumped out of the plane – I wanted to be back on the ground, not 4,000 metres up in the air. Of course, as a beginner you don’t do it on your own – you’re attached to the instructor who opens the parachute for you. Falling through the air at 180 kilometres per hour is a massive adrenaline rush. That first time was five years ago, and since then I’ve done more than twenty solo jumps.

Mike

Mountains offer a challenge I find impossible to ignore. I started climbing about twenty years ago, and I’ve now climbed three of the highest five peaks in Europe. Of course it can be dangerous, and I’ve had some scary moments, but the sense of achievement when you reach the top is amazing. When you’re pulling yourself up that wall of rock it feels like you’re in a battle against nature – it’s not a feeling you can get from anything in everyday life.

Teresa

I became hooked on snowboarding the very first time I tried it. I soon realized I had a natural talent for it, and it wasn’t long before I was winning competitions and getting a bit of prize money. My dream is to be able to make my living just from boarding, so I now take three months off work every winter and concentrate on improving my technique.

I’d recommend boarding to anyone. The exhilaration of going down the mountain, plus the beauty of the scenery – it’s just fantastic.

Answer the questions.

1. How long has Mike been climbing mountains?

2. Why did James decide to go surfing in Hawaii?

3. How has Teresa already earned money from snowboarding?

4. Who opened the parachute during Susan’s first skydive?

Now decide whether the following statements are true (T), false (F), or if the text doesn’t say (D).

1. Teresa doesn’t have a job.

2. Susan has done more than ten skydives without an instructor.

3. Mike has climbed more than twenty mountains in Europe.

4. Teresa gives snowboarding lessons.

5. Mike has climbed the highest mountain in Europe.

6. James surfed in Bali before he went to Hawaii.

7. Susan has always felt relaxed before jumping out of the plane.

8. James doesn’t think about anything else when he’s riding big waves in Hawaii.

9. Mike has sometimes been frightened while mountain climbing.

10. Teresa is trying to get even better at snowboarding.

11. Susan did about ten skydives with an instructor.

Now can you find the words in the text that mean the opposite of the following?

1. tiny 2. ugliness 3. failure 4. in your own country 5. Learner

Lesson 24.

Vocabulary

SPORTS

Give names for the illustrated sports

 

1. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ or s _ _ _ _ _	6. _ _ _ m _ _ _ _
2. _ _ _ _ _ y	7. _ _ _ _ _ _ - ball
3. _ _ _ _ _ t _ _ _ _	8. g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
4. _ _ c _ _ _	9. h _ _ _ j _ _ _
5. _ _ _ l _ _ _	10. _ k _ _ _ _ _

SPORTS

Match the following sports with the right pictures.

…. rowing	….. fencing
…. javelin	…. relay racing
…. pole vault	…. wrestling
…. hurdles

TEAM SPORTS

Match the sports with the pictures:

football	rugby	American football
basketball	baseball	volleyball

INDIVIDUAL SPORTS

Match the sports with the pictures:

tennis

table tennis

squash

badminton

Badminton is played with a shuttlecock. Badminton, tennis and squash are racquet sports. Table tennis is played with a bat.

ATHLETICS

There are two types of athletics event: track events are all those which take place on the running track; all other events, except the marathon, are field events. Match these events with the pictures:

the hurdles

the javelin

the discus

the shot-put

the high jump

the long jump

The event when you have to hop, step and jump is called the triple jump.

A sprint is a short race – 100 metres, for example. The 800, 1500 and 3000 metre races are middle-distance events. A long-distance race is 5000 metres or more.

FIGHTING SPORTS

Answer the questions below about these sports:

boxing	wrestling	judo
karate	kick boxing

1. Which three sports take place in a ring?

2. In which of the sports do you use gloves?

3. In which of the sports can you become a black-belt?

4. In which of the sports do you throw your opponent?

SPORTS

Fill in the table putting “+” where appropriate

SPORTS	TEAM	INDIVIDUAL	COMBATIVE	INDOOR	OUTDOOR
rugby
relay race
jumping
golf
fencing
skiing
boxing
cricket
riding
soccer

TENNIS AND GOLF

If you play tennis or golf, and you do not know these words, check them in your dictionary:

Tennis: serve, ace, return, forehand, backhand, smash, topspin, slice, net, baseline, tramlines.

Golf: drive, chip, putt, tee, fairway, bunker, green, bogey, par, birdie, eagle.

What’s the sport?