1. Read the texts and answer the questions. Write D (Dara), E (Emil) or B (Bonnie).
Which sportsperson …
1 won three gold medals at one Olympic Games? ……..
2 competed most recently? ……..
3 competed in the Winter Olympics? ……..
4 won the most gold medal? ……..
5 had the longest Olympic career? ……..
AMAZING OLYMPIANS
Dara Torres
Dara Torres was born in Los Angeles in the USA. She was part of a large family, with
four older brothers and a younger sister. At school her best sport was swimming.
At the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Dara was part of the American team and
she won a gold medal in the relay. She also competed at the Olympics in 1988, when
she won two medals, and 1992, when she won one gold medal. After a break of seven
years without competitions, Dara won five medals at the 2000 Games in Sydney,
including two gold. And amazingly, she competed again in Beijing in 2008. She won
three silver medals at those games. In total, Dara won twelve Olympic medals, including
four gold medals.
Emil Zátopek
Emil Zátopek was born in Czechoslavakia in 1922, the youngest of six children. At the
age of fifteen, Emil started work at a shoe factory. The factory organised an athletics
competition and Emil came second out of 100 runners. He started to train seriously, and
in 1948, he competed in the London Olympics, where he won the 10,000 metres and
came second in the 5,000 metres.
But his greatest achievement was at the next Olympic Games, in Helsinki in 1952. He
won gold medals in the 5,000 and 10,000 metres. Then he decided to enter the
marathon too. It was his first marathon ever – and he won it. He set new Olympic
records in all three of his events. He competed at the 1956 Games, but didn’t win any
medals because he had a bad leg. He retired in 1957.
Bonnie Blair
Bonnie Blair was born in 1964 in New York, USA, and learned to ice skate when she
was only two years old. Her whole family loved speed skating but Bonnie was the most
talented. In 1984, Bonnie competed in the Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, but she didn’t
win any medals. Four years later, however, she won gold in the 500 metres, and in
1992 she won gold medals in the 500 and 1,000 metres. Because of a change in the
rules, the next Winter Olympics took place after only two years, in 1994. Bonnie won
gold medals in the same two events. She retired from skating in 1995.
2. Read the Reading Strategy. Then choose the correct answers (a-c).
1 Dara Torres was part of a family with
a four children.
b five children.
c six children.
2 Dara Torres did not compete in the Olympic Games in
a 1992. b 2004. c 2008.
3 In how many Olympic Games did Emil Zátopek compete?
a one b two c three
4 In his first marathon, Emil Zátopek
a came second out of a hundred runners.
b stopped running because of an injury.
c came first and set a new record.
5 In how many different events did Bonnie Blair win gold?
a one b two c three
6 How may Olympic gold medals did she win in total?
a three b four c five
