Part 1

Questions 1-10

Look at the sentences below about Tanya Streeter, a professional diver.

Read the text on the opposite page to decide if each sentence is true (T) or false (F).

1 Tanya Streeter’s world record in 2003 was the deepest she had ever dived. ___

2 There were other people in the water with Tanya during her record-breaking dive. ___

3 Tanya accepts that free-diving can be an extremely dangerous activity. ___

4 Tanya’s training programme depends on the event she is preparing for. ___

5 Most of Tanya’s training takes place in the water. ___

6 Tanya is careful to limit the number of training dives she does in a month. ___

7 Tanya spends more time helping environmental organisations than appearing in advertisements. ___

8 Tanya’s interest in the natural world started at an early age. ___

9 Tanya has found that being famous has its advantages. ___

10 Because she started free-diving fairly late, Tanya feels her sports career may be short. ___

Questions 11-15

Complete the sentences below with the correct form of the word in brackets.

11. In 2003, Tanya made history when she ________________ 120 metres in the ocean while holding her
breath. (dive)

12. Some people complained that there were too many _______________ involved in free-diving.
(dangerous)

13. When she is in training, she _________________ two thirds of her time doing land-based exercise at
the gym. (spent)

14. She doesn’t run because she worries about ________________ her knees. (injure)

15. She often appears in _________________ for sports products. (advertise)

Tanya Streeter holds four world records in free-diving, the sport in

In 2003, Tanya Streeter made history when she became the first person to dive 120 metres into the ocean
while holding her breath, and come back up to the top without help. She had been deeper a year before
but on that occasion she swam back up using a balloon. This time, however, she held her breath for over
three and a half minutes, which made her the only female in any sport to break the world record of a man.
A team of fourteen safety divers at different depths watched the dive.

Following reports of several serious accidents involving other divers, some people have complained that
free-diving is too dangerous a sport, but Tanya doesn’t agree, insisting that safety is the most important
thing, followed closely by training.

Most free-divers concentrate on one or two types of event within the sport, but whatever Tanya is in
training for, her practice timetable remains the same. Two thirds of the programme is spent doing land-
based training at the gym, with the rest divided between the pool and the ocean. She uses an exercise bike
to help improve the fitness of her heart. However, she doesn’t run, whether outdoors or on running
machines, because she doesn’t want to injure her knees. instead, she finds that fast walking is a very good
way to build her fitness. When she starts doing practice dives, she generally travels away from home. She
aims to do fourteen dives over a four-week period, with a rest day between each diving day. It is essential
that she doesn’t get tired because that could ruin all the preparation.

When Tanya is not preparing for an event, she makes frequent public appearances, mainly to advertise
sports products. She has also supported environmental organisations, for example doing research projects
or making films. Spending her childhood on the Caribbean island of Grand Cayman, she went swimming
whenever she could, and long afternoons were spent exploring rock pools in order to watch the sea life.
Tanya says that her life today is like living her childhood dreams. Because she is well-known in some
countries, she thinks people are prepared to listen to her when she is talking about environmental issues.

As for the future, Tanya, who is now in her thirties, says she plans to keep breaking her own world records.
As she didn’t take up free-diving until she was twenty-five, Tanya is keen to stress that she doesn’t intend to
retire from the sport for many years to come.
Part 2

Questions 16-20

Read the text and questions below.

For each question, circle the correct letter A, B, C or D.

Maria Mutola

Former 800 metres Olympic champion

In 1988, Maria Mutola was playing football as the only girl in an all-boys team in a local competition in
Mozambique. ‘We won,’ she said. ‘At first no one thought it was a problem that I was a girl. But then the
team we beat complained.’

The story appeared in a local newspaper and Jose Craveirinha, who had encouraged other African athletes,
learnt about Maria. He went to meet her and found her kicking a ball around outside the football club. He
realised immediately that she was fast. ‘He talked to me about athletics. I had no idea what he meant. The
only sport I knew about was football. Then he bought me running shoes and took me training. It was such
hard work and my legs really ached.’ But Jose visited her parents and persuaded them she could be
successful and this would help end their poverty. They agreed to let him take her away to train.

In 1991, she finally accepted an invitation to train in the United States. She had refused previously because
she knew she would miss her family. Her background was unlike those of the girls she met in the US. She
explains, ‘They were good athletes but, while I worried about my parents having enough to eat, they
worried about dresses and make-up. They knew very little about me and even less about my problems. But
I knew I was lucky to be there. The trainers were brilliant and I learnt a lot.’

Today, Maria still runs and for most of the year she lives happily in South Africa with her mother.

16 What is the writer trying to do in the text?

A persuade more Africans to take up athletics

B describe how Maria became a top athlete

C give information about Mozambique

D explain how Maria manages to stay fit

A he went to watch a local football competition.

B she was blamed for her team losing a football competition.

C he saw an article about her role in a football match.

D people complained about another member of her football team.

18 When Jose first introduced Maria to athletics, she

A didn’t know what was involved.

B was worried about being injured.

C was keen to learn everything he knew.

D didn’t think her family would approve.

19 What does Maria say about the girls she met in the United States?

A They did not make full use of their abilities.

B Their training programmes were less demanding than hers.

C They did not show enough respect for the trainers.

D Their experiences of life were very different from hers.

20 What would Maria say about her life?

A “Jose has made all my dreams possible. From the first day we met, I was certain I wanted to become
a top athlete.”

B “My life hasn’t always been easy but I’ve had many opportunities. Running is important to me and
so is my family.”

C “I regret becoming involved in athletics. It was horrible leaving Mozambique and my parents. I’d like
to go back to football.”

D “The US has some wonderful training facilities, so I’m glad that I agreed to go when I was first
offered the chance.”
PART 3

Questions 21-30

Read the text below and choose the correct word for each space.

For each question, circle the letter next to the correct word A, B, C or D.

WILLIAM THE HERO!

Brave William Baldock, (0)……………… is six years old, is a hero after helping his mother when she fell
downstairs. William quickly rang (21)…………..… an ambulance when he discovered his mother had broken
her leg. In spite of being frightened, he (22)…………….. the emergency services what had happened and
answered all the questions they asked him. He also telephoned his father (23)………………. work, and then
his grandmother, to explain what he had (24)……………… While waiting for (25)…………………… people to
come, William looked after his 18-month-old sister.

When ambulance man Steve Lyn went to the house, he was amazed: ‘It’s (26)………………….. that a young
boy of six knew the right number to (27)………………, and was able to give us the correct information.
(28)………………… of William’s quick thinking, we were able to (29)………………… there immediately.’

Mrs Baldock left hospital yesterday, very (30)………………. to both William and the ambulance service.

0 A who B that C which D whose

21 A to B off C for D with

22 A said B talked C spoke D told

23 A in B at C on D by

24 A done B made C acted D worked

25 A these B every C each D this

26 A pleased B fine C clever D great

27 A put B set C dial D hit

28 A Since B Because C As D Although

29 A manage B find C get D reach

30 A agreeable B happy C grateful D approving