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ENGLISH FOR TEENAGERS · GENERAL ISSUES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

BECOMING A
CHAMPION

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17XC-S518-RG76

1 Warm up

Look at the pictures and answer the questions below.

Picture 1 Picture 2 Picture 3

Picture 4 Picture 5 Picture 6

What sports can you see in the images?

Choose two of the images and tell a classmate how the sports are similar and how they are different.

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Have you ever done these sports? What sports do you do? Use the correct collocations with the
sports and add them to the chart. Can you add any others?

2 Focus on vocabulary
Part A: Match each word or phrase to its correct definition.

1. repetitive (adj.) a. try to achieve something over a long period of time

2. pursue (v) b. say what is wrong with something or someone

3. ashamed (adj.) c. all the time

4. accomplish (v) d. ready to do something happily

5. criticize (v) e. do something successfully or complete something

6. medal (n) f. a round piece of metal that is given to people who win
competitions
7. willing (adj.) g. feeling embarrassed about something

8. constantly (adv.) h. doing or saying something so many times that it

becomes boring

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Language Tip

Many adjectives end with the suffix -ive. These adjectives are often attached to a noun
or verb with the meaning "likely to or connected with." Look at these examples:

repeat + ive = repetitive ( = likely to repeat)

action + -ive = active (= connected with actions)

destroy + -ive = destructive (= likely to destroy)

Which nouns or verbs do you think these adjectives come from?

Part B: Write the correct word or phrase from Part A in each sentence.

1. Winning a gold at the Olympics is a highlight of any athlete’s career.

2. The player felt after he was caught cheating and said he wouldn’t do it again.

3. After retiring from tennis, she decided to a career in the business world.

4. The players were complaining to the referee. They wouldn’t stop!

5. By playing at a World Cup, she has every young soccer player’s dream.

6. It’s hard not to the player in this situation. It was definitely a red card and now
his team is at a big disadvantage.

7. She trains every morning and every evening and is always to do more. She’s
serious about wanting to be a professional.

8. I like sports and exercise, but the PE classes at our school are so . We always do
the same thing! Football!

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Part C: Discuss these questions about sports with a classmate and use the word in bold in your
answers.

1. Have you ever won a medal in sports competition? Do you know anyone who has won a medal?
2. Do you think coaches and trainers should criticize players? How do you feel if someone criticizes
you?
3. Do you think training and playing sport is fun or is it boring and repetitive?

3 Reading

You are going to read an article called What it takes to become a champion. Talk about these images
and decide how they might be connected to the article. Read the article and check your predictions.

Picture 1 Picture 2

Picture 3 Picture 4

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What it takes to become a champion

Sports and games are, for most of us, about having fun. But for the young people who want to be
the best, it’s different. They know that loving what they do is not enough. So, how do you become a
champion?

1. Success in anything starts with wanting to do well. Dreaming big is a good thing when it comes to sports. Top
athletes imagine themselves winning races in practice, and they play music as they do so and then play that same
music just before a race. But if you want it to be more than a dream, you have to take action.
2. You have to decide you’re going to be the best and not stop until you have reached your goal. Most of us prefer to
try something new when an activity gets too difficult, or it becomes boring and repetitive. That’s not such a bad
thing if you want to have variety in your life. Champions, though, pursue their original plan, even when it means
not always doing the same as friends and family.
3. Today’s champions probably didn’t have an active social life in their teens, definitely slept a lot less than their
friends, maybe had fewer vacations, and didn’t watch nearly as many TV shows as the rest of us. They had to train
every morning and every weekend. They gave everything up so that they could accomplish their goals. But even
so, the road will not have been an easy one.
4. When we do something wrong, it is normal to either try to forget about it or spend time feeling ashamed about it.
The best take their mistakes and analyze what went wrong so they can do better next time. Basketball superstar
Michael Jordan said: "I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life—and that is why I succeed." This works,
and not just in sports – the best criticize themselves. However, it means you have to have another key quality:
self-confidence.
5. Believing you can do something helps you do it. Henry Ford said, "If you think you can or you can’t, you’re right."
Confidence also helps you keep that all-important balance. Championship competitions are stressful events, with
big audiences, and the world’s media, too. Excitement can turn into anxiety. Tennis player Emma Raducanu and
soccer player Marcus Rashford have both talked about this. Top performers train themselves to have a positive
reaction to pressure. They use it to help them do better. Although it must be said, they don’t do it alone.
6. When people make speeches after accepting awards, cups, and medals, they always thank their coaches and
families. Swimming experts note that the young swimmers who do best usually have positive support from home
and coaches who think about long-term goals.
7. To conclude, then, if you love something so much that you are willing to work at it constantly, give up other things
for it, fail at it and continue anyway, if you believe in yourself, and the people around you want to help, then you
can be a champion.

Adapted from: The Conversation

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Look at the article again and decide if the statements are true (T), false (F), or the information is not
given (NG).

1. The majority of young people play sports for fun. (para.1)

2. Some athletes listen to music while they are competing. (para.2)

3. Those who want to be champions often have a lot of variety in their lives. (para.3)

4. If you want to be a champion, you can’t do a lot of the things most teenagers do. (para.4)

5. Michael Jordan believes that failing has helped him. (para.5)

6. Marcus Rashford and Emma Raducanu have both had problems with stress. (para.6)

7. The best coaches believe that the next competition is always the most important. (para.7)

8. If you work hard, it is possible to be a champion. (para.8)

What do you think are the positive and negative things about trying to become a sports champion?
Discuss and write down your ideas below.

4 Sports vocabulary
Look at the vocabulary in the boxes. Use the words in the middle to make phrases we use to talk
about sports equipment and places. Write as many as you can. You can use words more than once.

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5 Listening
You are going to listen to a conversation between a girl and her dad. They are in a sports shop. What
do you think they are doing there?

Listen to the conversation. Why are they in the sports shop?

Listen again and answer the questions.

1. Why does Dad want to buy some new sneakers?

a. To match his new backpack.

b. To look cool when jogging.

c. To help him get fit.

2. Why does the daughter think skiing is not a good idea?

a. The climate is too warm for skiing.

b. You have to get up too early to go skiing.

c. They don’t live near any ski slopes.

3. What activity do they decide to do together?

a. Jogging.

b. Tennis.

c. Squash.

4. Why can’t Dad commit to doing exercise early in the morning?

a. He has to take his children to do their hobbies.

b. He is too tired to get up.

c. The gym isn’t open that early.

5. When is Dad free for exercise?

a. Saturday afternoons

b. When he gets home from work

c. When the gym is open

6. Why does the daughter take Dad out of the shop?

a. So they can go and eat cake together.

b. So they can go and make a plan together.

c. So they can go and spend money together.

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6 Exam practice

Who chooses your sneakers? What’s important when you buy a new pair of sneakers? Compare and
contrast these shoes. Which would you choose to wear and which would you buy for your parents?

Picture 1 Picture 2 Picture 3

7 Speaking: Get someone off the sofa!

Part A: Discussion. Imagine that you are a team of personal trainers and you’ve just been given your
first client. Your first client is the dad from the sports shop! Your job is to design a fitness program
for him.

Before you meet, you need to decide the following:

1. What exercise or sport should he do?

2. When does he need to do exercise?
3. How much exercise does he need to do?
4. What exercise is best for him?

Complete the timetable for your new client:

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

Morning

Afternoon

Evening

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Part B: Roleplay

8 Homework

Design a similar timetable for someone at home and see if you can persuade them to follow some of
your ideas for a week.

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

Morning

Afternoon

Evening

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