Part II Reading (skimming and scanning) (15 minutes)

　　Directions：In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions on Answer Sheet 1. For question 1—7,choose the best answer from the four choices marked A),B),C),and D).For questions 8—10,complete the sentences with the information given in the passage.

　　The Modern Olympic Games

　　The Modern Olympic Games might have remained just a part of history without the dream of one Frenchman, Pierre de Coubertin. Coubertin believed that sport and exercise were very important for the health and happiness of every man and also for the nation. He therefore tried, in 1892, to interest other Frenchmen in his dream of starting a modern form of the early Greek Games. His ideas were strongly criticized by many people, who did not really understand what he was trying to do. It is perhaps sad that the great work Pierre de Coubertin did to bring back the Games was never properly recognized during his lifetime. Gradually, however, people all over the world became interested in his ideas and at a meeting in Paris in 1894, with representatives from twelve different countries; plans were made to hold the first modern Games in Athens in 1899.

　　Organizing the first modern Games, however, was not without problems. The Greek government was unhappy with the decision to hold the Games in Athens, as they had serious economic problems at the time and did not feel they were in a position to spend the necessary money. It seemed therefore that the Games would be finished before they had even begun. Prince Constantine of Greece, however, gave his support to Coubertin and the newly-formed Olympic Committee and other rich Greeks soon followed his example. Enough money was collected in Greece and abroad to build a new stadium and pay all the other costs.

　　On 5th April, 1896, a crowd of over 60 000 people watched the King of Greece open the first modern Olympic Games. There were, however, very few competitors - only two hundred and eighty-five. Australia, Austria, Britain, Bulgaria, Chile, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Sweden, Switzerland and the USA, were the only countries to send athletes to the Games and most of the athletes who did come had to pay for their own travel and other costs. There were ten sports in the first program - cycling, gymnastics, tennis, swimming, athletics, fencing, weight-lifting, rowing, wrestling and shooting; there were also other non-sporting events, such as concerts and ballet, just as there had been at the early Games.

　　At the first modern Olympics almost all the gold medals were won by American sportsmen, but the most famous of all the first medal winners was a young Greek named Spyros Louis, who came from a small village in the mountains near Athens. It was he who won the long and difficult race, the Marathon, and gave the Greeks the national win they had hoped for.

　　The Greeks would have been happy to keep the Games in Greece but Coubertin believed strongly that the Olympics should be truly international and would not allow this to happen. It was therefore decided to hold the next Games in Paris in 1900. Sadly, however, the Paris Games and the following Games, held in St. Louis, America, in 1904, were poor examples of Coubertin's dream and Coubertin himself did not even travel to the St. Louis Games. For these two Games were more like circus shows than serious international sports meetings. Only fifteen non-Americans went to the 1904 Games, mainly because the high travel costs prevented others from competing. Olympic events were mixed with other sports and events, and the Games were organized to continue over many months, so that as much money as possible could be made by the organizers from the selling of tickets.

　　It was not until 1908, when the Games were held in London, that international rules and distances were introduced;until then the events had been the decision of the organizing nation alone. The London Games were far better organized than any of the other modern Games but it took many more years before Coubertin's dream of a truly international meeting of sportsmen became a reality. It was necessary to make many changes before the Olympic Games became as well-organized and as popular as they are today.

　　Since 1896 the Games have been held every four years, except for a break during the years of the two World Wars. Gradually the number of competitors who take part in each Games has grown and so has the number of countries. In 1896, only thirteen countries were represented and only two hundred and eighty-five competitors took part. Today, however, as many as one hundred and twenty-two countries send athletes to the Games and more than seven thousand men and women come to the Games to take part. In recent years, the number of events has grown to twenty-one, eleven of which are also open to women.

　　It is interesting that Coubertin, whose ideas were born in the late nineteenth century, probably never imagined that women would ever play a part in the new Olympics. Women had never competed in the early Greek Games; indeed, for many years they were not even allowed to watch. In modern times, the London Games in 1908 were the first in which women took a serious part - 36 women came to the Games to compete. The first woman to win Olympic events was the British Tennis Player, Charlotte Cooper, who won a tennis event in 1900. From 1908, however, the number of events began to grow with the introduction of ladies’ gymnastics. Athletics events for women were introduced in 1928 at the Games held in Amsterdam. Today, women are as highly-trained and as fit as men. Although in almost every sport women and men compete separately, in horse-riding events they compete against each other and women have shown over the years that they are just as good.

　　The International Olympic Committee, whose home is in Lausanne in Switzerland, is responsible for all important decisions of the Olympic Movement. The members of this committee are chosen not by their governments but by members already on the committee and they are therefore above politics or group interests. Most of the members are simply rich men who wish to keep Coubertin’s ideas alive. Not every country is represented, therefore, because this would mean more than 120 members and no decisions would ever be made.

　　However, each country must form a National Olympic Committee before it is allowed to send competitors to the games and this committee must be recognized by the International Olympic Committee. At present, more than 136 countries have formed such a committee. The National Committees are responsible for organizing the national teams and for deciding which competitors to send. Competitors cannot choose to go to the Games - they must be chosen and this means competing against their own countrymen. It is not even enough to be the best in the country, for each competitor must be able to reach the standard expected for entry to the Games. These standards change each year as sportsmen and sportswomen improve. Some countries are not able to send all the competitors they would like to, even if they have reached the expected standard, because of the cost. The National Committee must then decide whether to send the competitors who have the most chance of winning or whether, instead, to send competitors to represent each sport even though some of them have little hope of doing well.

　　Not only the competitors but also the team manager must be paid for. The manager is an extremely important member of the team;he is responsible for the competitors while they are at the Games and his job includes, for example, getting the competitors to each event on time and helping with medical or personal problems. Most countries ask the people for money to help pay for the costs of travel and training. A lot of money is given by businesses and companies who also give, for example, clothes, shoes and uniforms.

　　The city where the Games are to be held is chosen by the International Olympic Committee;this is usually decided five years before the Games are to take place. Several cities may wish to hold the Games in any one year and the Committee decides only after it has listened to and seen the arguments and plans of each city. Once chosen, the city then has five years to prepare.

　　1. Coubertin planned to hold the first modern Olympic Games in_________ in Athens.

　　A). 1894 B). 1896

　　C). 1899 D). 1900

　　2. The competitors of the first Olympic Games came from all of the following countries EXCEPT__________.

　　A). UK B). Hungary

　　C). Switzerland D). Norway

　　3. Which of the following was NOT part of the first Olympic Games?

　　A). concerts B). circus

　　C). fencing D). boxing

　　4. According to the passage, the most successful modern Olympic Games was the one held in_________

　　A). Athens, Greece B). St. Louis, America

　　C). Paris, France D). London, UK

　　5. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

　　A). Women were not allowed to participate in the ancient Olympics.

　　B). Women were not allowed to watch the Olympic Games in the past.

　　C). Women appeared in the Amsterdam Olympic Games.

　　D). Before 1908 there were no women in the Olympic Games.

　　6. Women and men always compete separately except in_______

　　A). tennis B). racing

　　C). swimming D). horse-riding

　　7. What do we learn about the International Olympic Committee (IOC)?

　　A). Every country has its representatives in IOC.

　　B). The representatives in IOC speak for their own countries.

　　C). Most representatives in IOC are wealthy.

　　D). The representatives in IOC are elected by their own country.

　　8. It was _________________ that are responsible for organizing the national teams and for deciding which competitors to send.

　　9. Both the competitors and ___________ must be paid for.

　　10. Every city chosen to hold the Olympic Games usually have___ to prepare.