SPORT IN OUR COUNTRY. Millions of people all over the world are fond of different sports and games

 

Millions of people all over the world are fond of different sports and games. Sport makes people healthy, keeps them fit, more organized and better disciplined. It develops such qualities as courage, endurance, self-possession and team spirit.

People in our country are sport-lovers, too. Numerous kinds of sports, both winter and summer, are popular in Russia, such as hockey, soccer, track-and-field, weightlifting, tennis, basketball, volleyball, figure-skating, cross-country skiing, swimming, cycling and many others. Sporting activities are a part of daily life in Russia. All water sports are wide-spread, including swimming, diving, sailing, water skiing, canoeing and yachting. Physical education is a compulsory subjectin all schools and universities. At present there are many modern stadiums, outdoor and indoor swimming pools, rowing stations, volleyball, basketball and tennis courts, football pitches, ski jumps and cycle tracks in our country.

Sports in our country have traditionally been divided into amateur and professional. Millions of citizens of Russia engage in some sporting activities and even take part in competitions on their personal initiative. At sports clubs and keep-fit centers people go in for aerobics, yoga, body-building, swimming, skating, jogging. Many of them are fee-paying now.

Much attention is paid in the country to organized sports. There are different sporting complexes, societies and clubs in Russia. Over 13 physical education institutes and faculties of physical training at pedagogical institutes and universities are functioning in our country. Youngsters from the age of 7 to 18 are trained inspecialized secondary physical educationsports schools which are run by the major sports clubs. The schools cover a wide range of sports, from track-and-field and calisthenics to boxing. There are plenty of talented young athletes in our country. Many of them take part in various tournaments and championships.

A uniform sports rating system was established in our country. This system is based on the principle of consistent and gradual development of the sporting fitness of the young athletes. There are three sports ratings: 1^st, 2^nd & 3^rd. Master of Sport is the highest category. Having chosen his field of sports, the young athlete begins to climb the sports ladder going up and up from the third category rating to Master of Sports. The sports rating system has now covered over 60 sports. There is also a junior sports rating system.

Russian athletes have already achieved the outstanding results in those sports which began to develop in the country comparatively recently. Among them there is tumbling, mountain climbing, checkers. Over 90 different kinds of sports including all the Olympic events are practiced in Russia today (not counting national sports). A great number of our sportsmen participate in the Olympic Games. Since their debut at the Helsinki Olympic Games in 1952, Russia has been a participant of all Olympiads. In 1980 Moscow was the host-city of the 22^nd Olympic Games. Our sportsmen won 80 gold, 64 silver and 49 bronze medals there. That was the best result among national teams. We are proud of our athletes.

NOTES:

personal initiative	- собственная инициатива
to pay much attention to smth.	- уделять большое внимание чему-либо
to be trained in sports schools	- проходить подготовку в спортивных школах
to be run by smth.	- управляться чем-либо, находиться под руководством
consistent & gradual development	- последовательное и постепенное развитие

NEW WORDS:

to engage [ɪn'geɪʤ] in sporting activities	- заниматься спортом
healthy ['helθɪ]	- здоровый
endurance [ɪn'djuər(ə)ns]	- выносливость
a sport-lover [spɔ:t 'lʌvə]	- любитель спорта
a compulsory subject [kəm'pʌls(ə)rɪ] ['sʌbʤekt]	- обязательный предмет
feature ['fi:ʧə]	- характерная черта, особенность
sporting activities ['spɔ:tɪŋ æk'tɪvɪti]	- физкультура, спортивная деятельность, занятия спортом
big-time ['bɪg,taɪm] sport; syn. top-class sport	- спорт высших достижений
organized ['ɔ:g(ə)naɪzd] sport	- организованный спорт
a youngster ['jʌŋ(k)stə]	- молодой человек, юноша
devotee ['devəu'ti:]; syn. fan	- болельщик
attain [ə'teɪn]; syn. achieve	- достигать, добиваться
to cover ['kʌvə] a wide range of sports	- охватывать большое количество видов спорта
an international tournament ['tuənəmənt]	- международные соревнования
calisthenics ['kælɪs'θenɪks]	- художественная гимнастика
objective [əb'ʤektɪv]; syn. aim	- цель, задача
climb [klaɪm] the sports ladder	- делать спортивную карьеру
tumbling ['tʌmblɪŋ]	- акробатика
mountain climbing ['mauntɪn] ['klaɪmɪŋ]	- альпинизм
checkers ['ʧekəz]	- шашки
a participant [pɑ:'tɪsɪp(ə)nt] of smth.	- участник чего-либо
to break [breɪk] Olympic & world records	- устанавливать олимпийские и мировые рекорды
to hold [həuld] a record	- удерживать рекорд
to attract [ə'trækt] large numbers of fans	- привлекать большое количество болельщиков
mastery ['mɑ:st(ə)rɪ]	- мастерство
fitness ['fɪtnəs], physical ['fɪzɪk(ə)l] fitness; syn. endurance [ɪn'djuər(ə)n(t)s]	- хорошее состояние здоровья, выносливость; физическая подготовленность
fee-paying [fi:] ['peɪɪŋ]	- платный
keep-fit centre [ki:p] [fɪt] ['sentə]	- оздоровительный центр
jogging ['ʤɔgɪŋ]	- бег трусцой

Answer the questions:

1. Why is sport so important?

2. What sports do people in Russia go in for?

3. What sporting activities do people go in for at amateur clubs & keep-fit centers?

4. What sports are the most popular in Russia?

5. What kinds of water sports are wide-spread in our country?

6. Is physical education a compulsory subject in all schools & universities?

7. What sports facilities are there in Russia?

8. What proves that much attention is paid to organized sports?

9. How many education institutes & academies are functioning in our country now?

10. What system was established in our country?

11. What is this system based on?

12. How many sports ratings are there?

13. Has this rating system now covered over 60 events?

14. How many events are practiced in Russia today?

15. Do a great number of our sportsmen participate in the Olympic Games?

16. When did our athletes take part in the Olympic Games for the first time? Where?

Exercise 1. Find the synonyms of the following words:

1. to attain – a) to develop, b) to achieve, c) to climb, d) to encourage

2. objective – a) encouragement, b) chess, c) aim, d) devotee

3. devotee – a) motto, b) fan, c) tumbler, d) mastery

4. fitness – a) endurance, b) feature, c) exercise, d) aim

5. to increase – a) to form, b) to guarantee, c) to enlarge, d) to appear

6. to embrace – a) to combine, b) to involve, c) to unite, d) to form

Exercise 2. Change the words in bold from the following sentences:

1. fitness	1. Millions of citizens of Russia engage in some sporting activities.
2. top-class sport	2. Football and ice hockey matches attract large numbersof fans.
3. devotee	3. He attainedhis aim of becoming an Olympic champion.
4. go in for	4. The main objectiveof physical education is to improve health and general physical development of the individual.
5. achieve	5. Big-time sportadvances on the basis of a mass physical culture movement.
6. aim	6. Sport develops such qualities as courage, endurance, self-possession and team spirit.

 

Exercise 3. Find in the text the following English equivalents:

 

Развивает выносливость, самообладание, командный дух; любители спорта; обязательный предмет во всех школах; современные стадионы, открытые и закрытые бассейны; спортивные клубы и оздоровительные центры; многие из них платные; различные спортивные комплексы, общества и клубы; охватывать большое количество видов спорта; система спортивных разрядов; последовательное и постепенное развитие; выбрав свой вид спорта; система спортивных разрядов охватывает более 60 видов спорта; участник всех Олимпиад; страна-организатор ХХП Олимпийских Игр.

 

Exercise 4. Read the sentences, translate and say if these sentences are false or true:

1. Only summer kinds of sports are popular in Russia.

2. All water sports are not wide-spread.

3. Physical education is a compulsory subject in all schools and universities.

4. Youngsters from the age of 15 to 25 are trained in specialized secondary physical education sports schools.

5. The schools don`t cover a wide range of sports.

6. There are plenty of talented young athletes in our country.

7. There are two sports ratings.

8. Master of sport is the highest category.

9. The sports rating system has now covered only 50 sports.

10. A great number of our sportsmen participate in the Olympic Games.