After the Summer Olympics are over, when all the athletics have gone home and the television audience has switched off, another group of athletics and fans will arrive at the host city, and another competition will begin. These are the Paralympics, the games for athletes with a disability. But in Beijing in 2008, for the first time, one of the greatest Paralympics will not be taking part.

　 She is a British athlete by the name of Tanni Grey-Thormpson. Born with spine hifida (脊椎裂) which left her paralysed from the waist down. Tanni used a wheelchair from the age of 7. at first, she was not keen on sport, apart from horse-riding, which gave her a sense of freedom. But in her teens, she started taking sports more seriously. She tried swimming, basketball and tennis. Eventually she found athletics, and never looked back.

　 Indeed, Tanni’s athletic career took off. In 1984, when she was 15, she pulled off a surprise victory in the 100metres at the Junior National Wheelchair Games.

　 In 1988, Tanni went to her first Paralympic Games in Seoul. She won bronze in the 400 metres. Even greater success followed at the 1992 Barcelona. Paralympics. Tanni won gold in the 100, 200, 400 and 800 metres relay, setting two world records in the process. In the same year she achieved she first of her six London Wheelchair Marathon victories.

　 Tanni’s enduring success had been part motivation(动机), part preparation, “The training I do that enables me to be a good sprinter(短跑运动员) enables me to be good at a marathon too. I train 50 weeks of the year and that keeps me prepared for whatever distance I want to race…. I am still competing at a very high lever, but as I get older things get harder and I want to retire before I fall apart.”

　 Indeed Tanni retired finally after the Visa Paralympic World Cup in 2007. Her wish is to coach young athletes for Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

　 In spite of ups and downs, she never take her fate lying down. In her splendid life, she has won an amazing eleven gold medals, four silvers and one bronze in series of Paralympics- a top lever athletic career covering two decades. She has won the London Wheelchair Marathon six times, more than any other competitor, and she has set over thirty world records.

　 What advice does she have for young athletes? “Work hard at your studies, and then train, train and train again.”

41. Which of the following sports did Tanni like before thirteen?

A. Basketball         B. Swimming.          C. Tennis.        D. Horse-riding.

42. When did Tanni win her first Olympic gold medal?

A. In 1984.           B. In 1988.             C. In 1992.       D. In 2007.

43. The underlined word “that” in the 5th paragraph refers to _______.

A. fifty weeks’ training             B. being a good sprinter

C. training almost every day         D. part motivation and part preparation

44. What’s the right order of the events related to Tanni?

a. She works as a coach.      b. She took up athletics.

c. She won four gold medals in Barcelona.   d. She competed in her first Paralympic Games.

e. She achieved a victory in her first London Wheelchair Marathon.

A. b, d, c, e a    B. a, d, b, c ,e     C. A,d,c,e,b       D. b.d.a.e.c

45. What can we learn from Tanni’s success?

A. Union is strength.                 B. Never too late to learn.

C. Well begun is half done.         D. No pains, no gains.

　　In the 19th century England people liked to go to the seaside. In those days, ladies wore long bathing dresses, and men wore bathing suits. Women did not walk about on the beach in their bathing dresses. They hired a bathing machine. A bathing machine was used for changing in, and for taking the bather down to the sea. It cost 2 pence to hire a machine and an attendant (f~ ~). When she had paid, the bather climbed up the back steps and got into the bathing machine. Then she changed into her bathing dress. When she had changed , the machine was pulled down to the sea. The bathing machine stopped in the water and the bather went down the front steps into the water. If she did not want to get into the sea, the attendant pulled her in.

1. Who used the bathing machine?

　　A. Women bathers.

　　B. Both men and women bathers.

　　C. Bathers who couldn’t swim.

　　D. Bathers who couldn’t walk.

2. A bathing machine was mainly used for

　　A. giving the bather a pleasure ride on the beach

　　B. giving the bather some exercise before getting into the water

　　C. protecting the bather from catching cold from the sea wind

　　D. protecting the bather from being seen in bathing dress out of water

3. In the 19th century people who used the bathing machine usually did the following things. Which is the right order for doing them?

　　a. Changing into bathing clothes

　　b. Getting out of the bathing machine

　　c. Paying 2 pence

　　d. Getting into the bathing machine

　　e. Being taken down the beach

　　f. Getting into the water

　　A. e,d,a,b,f,c　　B. c,d,a,e,b,f

　　C. c,d,e,a,b,f　　D. d,a,e,b,f,c