UNIT 6 CHAPTER 2 Unusual Olympic Sports

Before You Read A Answer the following questions.

Unusual Sports
1 Look at this list of Olympic events.@the ones that you know.

archery canoeing fencing synchronised-

snowboarding taekwondo water polo swimming
bobsledding tug-of-war

2 One of the events in A used to be an Olympic event, but it isn't anymore.

Which one do you think it is?
3 Now look at the pictures of three unusual Olympic sports on the next
page. Do you think that these are unusual sports? Why, or why not?

B Discuss your answers with a partner.

Reading Skill A Read each of the following sections in the passage on the next page.
Reading for Details Check (v") true (T), false (F), or not given (NG). If the sentence is false,
change it to make it true.
Reading for details is a
two-step process. First, 'Curling T F NG
scan to find the part 1 Curling is played on ice.
of the passage that 2 There are six players on each team.
has the information
you want. Second, 3 The stones never touch the center of the house.
\..
read every word in the
sentence and make 'Trampoline T F NG
sure you understand
4 Trampoline is a gymnastic sport.
the meaning. This can
be useful when taking 5 Judges look at how many tricks a gymnast
tests. can do.
6 America had only one trampoline gymnast in the
\..
2000 Olympics.

'Skeleton T F NG'
7 Early skeleton sleds were made out of bones.
8 The 1980 Winter Olympics were held in New York.
9 Zach Gale competed in the 1980 Winter Olympics.
\..

B Read the entire passage carefully. Then answer the questions on page 76.

74 UNIT 6 Chapter 2
 unusual Olympic Sports
For many people, the Olympic Games consist of popular sports like swimming, running, or ice
skating. Here are three unusual Olympic events, and three athletes who fell in love with them.
curllng•••••••••••••••••••••••••••
curling is a sport that is played on ice. Two teams of four
5 players each slide eight stones along the ice to a colored
circle (called the house). The object of the game is to
place a stone closest to the center of the house.
"I started curling very young," Canadian Olympic curler
Sammy Mccann told us. "My father managed a hotel with
10 an ice rink. As soon as the people left the ice, my friends
and I would get right on and start curling."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••Trampoline
Kids have been jumping on trampolines for almost a hundred years,
but it was only at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney that trampoline
became an official Olympic sport. In Olympic competitions, each 15
trampoline gymnast is judged on ten different skills. A gymnast
can score well by showing that they can control their bodies while
jumping high and twisting and flipping smoothly in the air.
"I love the sport. I've been doing it since I was five years old,"
said Jennifer Parilla, American trampoline gymnast. After Jennifer 20
competed in the 2000 Olympics (as the only American trampoline
gymnast), she got a tattoo of a butterfly to remind her of her "new
beginnings" as an Olympian.

Skeleton••••••••••••••••••••••••••
25 The sport of skeleton racing first became an Olympic sport
in 1928. Skeleton racers slide down an icy course at very
high speed on a simple sled. The sled is called a skeleton
because early sleds looked like human skeletons.
"I didn't start skeleton until I was 30," said American
30 skeleton racer Zach Gale. "While driving, my girlfriend and I
took a wrong turn at Lake Placid, New York; that's where
the 1980 Winter Olympics took place. They were offering
skeleton classes that afternoon. My girlfriend said, 'Why
don't we give it a try?' It was fun! I fell in love with it."

Unusual Olympic Sports 75

Reading A Choose the correct answers for the following questions.
Comprehension 1 This passage is about ______
Check Your Understanding a how to become an Olympic athlete
b how Olympic athletes first started in their sports
c why curling, trampoline, and skeleton are Olympic events
2 Jennifer Parilla got a tattoo to remind her of her first ______
a trampoline b butterfly c Olympics
3 These athletes took up the sport because ______
a they fell in love with it
b their parents told them to do it
c they wanted to enter the Olympics
4 Which athlete became interested in the sport later in life?
a Sammy McCann b Jennifer Parilla c Zach Gale

B Read the following sentences. Check (v") the sport(s) that best match(es)
each sentence. You may check more than one sport.

/' This sport .•. Curling Trampoline Skeleton

1 is held on ice.
2 has judges to look at different skills.
3 has two teams that compete
against each other.
4 is named after the main object the
athletes use.
5 involves going at very high speed5;.

Critical Thinking C Discuss the following questions with a partner.

1 Why do some people prefer these sports to more popular ones?

2 At what age do Olympic athletes usually begin training? How old is too
old to be an Olympic athlete?

Vocabulary A Match each word with its definition. The words in blue are from the
Comprehension passage.
Definitions 1 control a to seem the same
2 look like b to take care of (a business)
3 object c move over a smooth surface
4 race d a speed competition (in running)
5 slide e goal; the main idea of a game
6 take a wrong turn f to decide who is the winner
7 judge g to go left instead of right, or right
instead of left
8 manage h to make something or someone do
76 UNIT 6 Chapter 2 what you want
B Complete the following sentences using the words in blue from A. You
might have to change the form of the word.

1 Athletes usually have excellent of over their bodies.

2 When the began, the competitors jumped on their
sleds and began to down the slope.
3 It's hard to who is the better player: They're both
equally good!
4 On my first day of school, I was late for class because I ______
and went to the wrong classroom.

A Put these sports words into one of the categories below. Can you add Vocabulary Skill
other words? Discuss your answers with a partner. Organizing Vocabulary:
Words Relating to Sports
eettft racket player ice rink champion
ball competitor opponent puck sticks One helpful way to
stadium skates coach field gloves remember new words
sled course team ring manager is to put them into
meaningful groups
or categories-for
/ ""'\
Sports places Sports equipment Sports people example, positive and
court racket negative, or people,
player
places, and things.
Putting vocabulary in
groups like this can
help you to remember
new words and relate
them to other words
you know.

\..

B Now complete the following sentences· using the correct form of

words from A.

1 There are four on a curling ______

2 Football is usually played· on a(n) __________
3 You play tennis on a(n) ______ with a(n) ______ and a

4 Boxers wear big and fight in a(n) ______

5 Ice dancing competitions usually take place on a(n) ------, and
the competitors wear ______
6 Field hockey and ice hockey are played with ______ . In ice
hockey there is no ball; instead players use a(n) -----,---

Unusual Olympic Sports 77