polunina_ln_bobrovskaia_im_priroda_nauka_tekhnologii

4. What is the main idea of the text?

1.Fitness programs should be approached with skepticism and caution.

2.People should exercise to stay healthy.

3.Proper nutrition is important to physical fitness.

4.People with health problems and illness should see a physician before devising an exercise program.

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UNIT 7

SPORTS

WARMING UP

1.Using your own words, try to define the term sport. What are the main aspects of sports?

2.Why do so many people like sports? What is the national sport in your country? Give reasons for your opinion.

3.Do you prefer doing or watching sports?

4.Do you watch sports at the stadium or at home? Do you like going to a bar to watch a football match on a giant screen?

READING

A sport is commonly defined as an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play. It is governed by a set of rules or customs. In a sport the key factors are the physical capabilities and skills of the competitor when determining the outcome (winning or losing). The physical activity involves the movement of people, animals and/or a variety of objects such as balls and machines. In contrast, games such as card games and board games, could be called mind sports and some are recognized as Olympic sports, require only mental skills. Non-competitive activities such as jogging and rock-climbing, are usually classified as recreations.

Physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first often define the result of a sport. However, the degree of skill in some sports such as diving, dressage and figure skating is judged according to welldefined criteria. This is in contrast with other judged activities such as beauty pageants and body-building shows, where skill does not have to be shown and the criteria are not as well defined.

Accurate records are kept and updated for most sports at the highest levels, while failures and accomplishments are widely announced in sport news. Sports are most often played just for fun or for the simple fact that people need exercise to stay in good physical condition.

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Although they do not always succeed, sports participants are expected to display good sportsmanship, and observe standards of conduct such as being respectful of opponents and officials, and congratulating the winner when losing.

“Sport” comes from an old French word meaning “leisure.” American English uses the term “sports” to refer to this general type of recreational activity, whereas other regional dialects use the singular “sport.”

Professional sport is a major source of entertainment. The entertainment aspect of sports, together with the spread of mass media and increased leisure time, has led to professionalism in sports. This has resulted in some conflict, where the paycheck can be seen as more important than recreational aspects, or where the sports are changed simply to make them more profitable and popular, thereby losing certain valued traditions.

The entertainment aspect also means that sportsmen and women are often elevated to celebrity status.

Sports have many affinities with art. For example, figure skating, artistic gymnastics, dancesport, and Tai chi can be considered artistic spectacles. Similarly, there are other activities that have elements of sport and art in their execution, such as bodybuilding, free running, martial arts, performance art, Yoga, dressage, and culinary arts. Perhaps the best example is bull-fighting, which in Spain is reported in the arts pages of newspapers.

All sports involve physical and mental activities that are pursued for more than simply utilitarian reasons. For instance, running, when done as a sport, is not simply moving from one place to another. Value is gained from this activity when it is conducted simply for its own sake. This is similar to the concept of aesthetic value, which is seeing something over and above the strictly functional value coming from an object’s normal use. In the same way, a sporting performance such as jumping doesn't just impress as being an effective way to avoid obstacles. It impresses because of the ability, skill, and style that is demonstrated in its performance.

Art and sports were clearly linked at the time of Ancient Greece. The closeness of art and sport in these times was revealed by the nature of the Olympic Games, which were celebrations of both sporting and artistic achievements, poetry, sculpture and architecture.

(From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia)

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Expand your vocabulary

competitive – соперничающий to require – требовать

commitment – преданность; обязательство fair play – игра по правилам; перен. честность recreation – развлечение

accomplishment – достижение participant – участник

leisure – досуг, свободное время entertainment – развлечения affinity – родовое сходство

dressage – выездка (вид конного спорта) to pursue – преследовать

to reveal – показывать, обнаруживать

POST-READING ACTIVITY

1. Answer the following questions.

1.What is a sport? What are the key factors in a sport?

2.What are recreations?

3.Why do people do sports?

4.Do you agree that professional sport is a major source of entertainment?

5.Do sports have any affinities with art? What are they?

2. Diphthongs are two vowel sounds which run together. Most of the following words contain diphthongs. Put the words into the correct column according to their pronunciation. Cross out the odd ones. Mind there are two words here containing the sound [aıə]. Try to find the words.

3. Match the words and word expressions with similar meanings.

4. Study the following words from the text. Arrange them into two columns according to their suffixes. Translate the words.

competitive, commitment, skillful, physical, activity, competitor, capability, factor, movement, variety, mental, jogging, recreation, scoring, crossing, effective, accomplishment, condition, professional, entertainment, sportsmanship, respectful, professionalism, recreational, winner, regional, profitable, tradition, artistic, affinity, normal, bodybuilding, gymnastics, utilitarian, aesthetic, nature, functional, performance, achievement, sculpture, execution, architecture, running

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5. Make the following sentences from the text negative.

1.Physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first often define the result of a sport.

2.Accurate records are kept and updated for most sports at the highest levels.

3.The entertainment aspect of sports has led to professionalism in sports.

4.Similarly, there are other activities that have elements of sport and art in their execution.

5.Sports have many affinities with art.

6.All sports involve physical and mental activities.

7.Value is gained from this activity when it is conducted simply for its own sake.

8.Art and sports were clearly linked at the time of Ancient Greece.

6. Put questions to the words or word expressions in the bold type.

1.A sport is governed by a set of rules or customs.

2.The physical activity involves the movement of people, animals and/or a variety of objects such as balls and machines.

3.Sports participants are expected to display good sportsmanship.

4.The entertainment aspect also means that sportsmen and women are often elevated to celebrity status.

5.Art and sports were clearly linked at the time of Ancient Greece.

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LANGUAGE IN USE

7. Match the words given below with their definitions. There are three extra words you do not need.

1.… is the action of providing amusement or enjoyment.

2.… is the expression of creative skill in a visual form such as painting or sculpture.

3.… is the ability to do something well.

4.… is an enjoyable leisure activity.

5.… is an activity involving physical effort and skill in which a person or team competes against another or others.

6.… is something that has been achieved successfully.

7.… is time free for relaxation or enjoyment

8.… is a form of competitive activity or sport played according to rules.

9.… is an event or competition involving the public display of animals, plants, or products.

10.… is the performing of a sporting match.

11.… is a standard by which something may be judged or decided.

12.… is an action or pursuit.

8. Read the text and fill in the gaps with prepositions where necessary.

Basketball

Basketball, a fast-paced game, is played (1) … a rectangular court, generally indoors, (2) … two five-player teams. The primary objective

(3) … the game is to score more points than the opposition by putting a round ball (4) … a circular band, called a rim. The two rims are (5) … the each end of the court, placed 10 ft (3.1 m) above the ground and

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connected (6) … a backboard, a rectangular board that hangs (7) … the ceiling or is supported in the air on a pole or some other structure. One of the most popular sports (8) … the world, basketball is played (9) … men and women of all ages and ability levels in more than 200 countries.

A basketball team is organized, guided, and instructed (10) … a coach. The team consists (11) … five players – two guards, two forwards, and one center – all of whom play offense and defense. The guards - the point guard and the shooting guard – comprise what is called the backcourt. The point guard is generally the leader of the team (12) … the court, acting as an extension of the coach. The point guard must have exceptional ball-handling and passing skills, as well as good vision (ability to see clearly what is happening in all parts of the court). The shooting guard is generally a good ball handler (13) … excellent shooting and scoring talents. The small forward, the power forward, and the center compose what is called the frontcourt. The small forward is usually a strong scorer from both near the basket and (14) … a distance. This player must have good fundamental skills, including rebounding, ball handling, and passing. The power forward, who must be big and strong, primarily concentrates (15) … defense and rebounding. The center is usually (16) … the tallest player of the team, serving as the cornerstone of most play. Good centers score points on offense and block shots (17) … defense. Although there are specific positions, players can play anywhere on the court, according (18) … the team’s strategy.

Some details (19) … the game differ when it is played in different countries.

(Abridged from Microsoft Encarta, 2008)

9. Read the text and fill in the gaps with the appropriate words from the table below.

Soccer

Soccer is a game played by two teams on a rectangular (1) … , in which players (2) … to knock a round ball through the opponents’ goal, using any part of the body except the hands. Generally, players use their feet and heads as they kick, dribble, and pass the ball toward the

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goal. One player on each team guards the goal. This player, the goalkeeper, is the only player allowed to (3) … the ball with the hands while it is in play.

Soccer is a free-flowing game that has relatively few rules and (4) … little equipment. All that is needed to play is an area of open space and a ball. Soccer is the world's most popular sport, played by people of all ages in about 200 countries. The sport has millions of fans (5) … the world. Only in the United States and Canada is the game (6) … to as soccer. Outside these countries the sport is commonly called football, or fútbol in Spanish-speaking countries, where the game is particularly popular. The official name of the sport is association football. The word soccer is a slang corruption of the abbreviation assoc.

The Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) is the worldwide governing body of soccer. FIFA governs all levels of soccer, including professional play, Olympic competitions, and youth leagues. The organization also governs the sport’s premier event, the World Cup, an international competition held every four years (7) … national teams from 32 countries against one another.

In a regulation soccer game, each team fields 11 players. There are four main positions - goalkeeper, defender, midfielder, and attacker. One player from each team plays the position of goalkeeper, but the distribution of other players among the other positions can (8) ….

Generally, teams play with three or four defenders, who are also known as fullbacks. Their primary job is to (9) … an opposing attack by winning control of the ball. Three or four players called midfielders, or halfbacks, act as a link between defense and offense. Midfield is the most demanding position, as halfbacks must master skills necessary both to defend and attack. Attackers, or forwards, are primarily (10) … for scoring goals. Teams generally play with two, three, or four forwards.

In the professional game, a limited number of substitutes are permitted per contest, usually two or three. A replaced player may not reenter the game.

(Abridged from Microsoft Encarta, 2008)

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SPEAKING

10. The following statement belongs to George Orwell. Do you agree with it? Give reasons and specific examples to support your point of view.

“Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence. In other words, it is war minus the shooting.”

11. Interview a partner. Get some information about his/her lifestyle by asking the questions below.

1.What is your lifestyle? Is it healthy, quite healthy or quite unhealthy?

2.What sports do you like?

3.Which activities do you enjoy watching in the summer? In the winter?

4.Which activities do you enjoy doing in the summer? In the winter?

5.How often do you exercise?

6.Where do you exercise? Do you need any equipment? What equipment do you need?

7.Are there any new sports you want to try?

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