Why reaching the start line is worth gold to Qatari sprinter (Elementary)
методическая разработка (9 класс) по теме

Why reaching the start line is worth gold to Qatari sprinter  (Elementary)

1. Find the information

Quickly skim-read the article to find the answers to these questions.

1. Where is Noor al-Malki from? ____________________________________________________

2. Where will she be in the summer of 2012? ______________________________________

3. Why will she be there? ____________________________________________________________

2. Key words

Write the key words from the article next to the definitions below. The paragraph numbers have been given to help you. Then find the words in the article to read them in context.

1. to take part in a sports event for your country (para 1)_____________________________________________________

2. the process of taking part in something (para 2) ____________________________________________________________

3. A race at the start of a competition. The winners of these then compete against each other in the next races. (para 3) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. anything that stops progress or makes it difficult for someone to do something (para 3) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. women who are liked and looked up to for doing something very brave or good (para 3) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. the time in your life when you are at your best or most successful (para 5) ____________________________

7. the fact of being somewhere in particular (para 6) _____________________________________________________________

8. running at a very fast speed for a short period (para 8) _______________________________________________________

9. someone who trains a sports person or a team (para 8) _______________________________________________________

10. the way in which you deal with someone (para 9) ____________________________________________________________

11. a good reason for doing something (para 9) ___________________________________________________________________

12. to say things which give someone confidence or hope (para 10) ____________________________________________

3     Comprehension check

Are these statements true (T) or false (F) according to the information in the article? Underline the parts of the article where you can find the information. Correct any statements that are false.

1. Qatar is sending three young sports women to the Olympic Games in London.__________________________________________________

2. They will represent their country at running, swimming and cycling. ____________________________________________________________

3. Brunei is the only country in the Middle East which does not to send women athletes to the Olympics.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4. The 2020 Olympic Games will be in Qatar. ___________________________________________________________________________________________

5. Noor is the only sporty person in her family. _________________________________________________________________________________________

6. Noor trains in Qatar at a sports centre for women. __________________________________________________________________________________

7. Traditionally, sport in Qatar is not for women. _______________________________________________________________________________________

8. Noor thinks she will win a gold medal for her country. _______________________________________________________________________________

Why reaching the start line is worth gold to Qatari sprinter  (Elementary)

1 Even for a 17-year-old, Noor al-Malki is small: just over 5ft (1.52m) tall and a little under 45kg. This summer, Noor will become the first female athlete ever to represent Qatar in the Olympics.

2 Her active participation should last about 13 seconds, which is how long it takes her to run the 100m. For the Olympics, that is slow. Qatar had to get a special allowance from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) just to

get her a place on the starting blocks.

3 Noor is likely to finish last in her heat. But she will break a barrier that has stood far longer than 24 years. Noor doesn’t have heroines: there are no Qatari female role models in sport.

4 Qatar is trying to show the IOC that it is now willing and able to increase women’s sport in Qatar and across the Middle East.

5 Qatar wanted to host the 2020 Olympic Games but the intense summer heat meant the Games would have to be in October and not August. They plan to try again for the 2024 Games, when Noor will be 29 and in her athletic prime.

6 Qatar is also sending a swimmer, Nada Arkaji, 17, and a rifle shooter, Bahia al-Hamad, 19. The three young women are close friends. Their presence will help London 2012 become the first Olympics where the split between male and female athletes is 50-50.

7 Only 42% of Olympians in Beijing in 2008 were women. Only three of the 204 countries which took part did not send women for religious and cultural reasons: Qatar, Brunei and Saudi Arabia. This year, Brunei’s Olympic committee is sending a female 400m hurdler, Maziah Mahusin, as part of its 2012 team. That just leaves Saudi Arabia, which is not sending any female athletes.

8 Noor’s family was sporty: her brothers played football and her sisters played handball. She started sprinting in school competitions in 2008 and was spotted by the national coach.

9 She is one of 50 athletes who train at Qatar’s centre for women’s sport. “The centre tells girls like me that we have done a good job and we deserve to have special treatment,” she said. “It gives us hope and motivation.” Noor says many people are surprised when they find out what she does. “Traditionally, sport is not for women in an area like this. It is not common to see a female champion.”

10 Noor is not going to London for a medal. “I could not believe it when they told me I was going to the Olympics,” she said. “It was a shock but it was also a source of immense happiness and pride. It is the dream of every athlete in Qatar and I will be taking that with me. I am nervous but I try to focus on the fact that I am going for a specific reason, which is to represent Qatari women and to encourage more women to get into sport.”

© Guardian News and Media 2012

First published in The Guardian, 01/06/12

Note: Since, this article was written, Saudi Arabia

has announced that it will allow women to compete

in London 2012. In a statement issued on 24th June,

the Saudi embassy in London said that women could

compete as long as they qualify

Why reaching the start line is worth gold to Qatari sprinter  (Elementary)

 1.    Find the information

1. Qatar                      2. London, UK                           3. to take part in the summer Olympics

2.        Key words

1. represent          2. Participation                3. Heat            4. Barrier                  5. Heroines              

                   6. Prime                         7. presence

       8. sprinting                     9. Coach         10. Treatment              11. Motivation             12. encourage

3.        Comprehension check

1. T (paras 1 and 6)

2. F (paras 1 and 6) – running, swimming and rifle shooting

3. F (para 7) – At the time the article was written, Saudi Arabia was the only country not sending female athletes to London 2012.

4. F (para 5) Qatar’s wanted to host the 2020 Olympics but it’s too hot in August; it plans to bid for the 2024 Olympics.

5. F (para 8) – Her brothers played football and her sisters played handball.

6. T (para 9)

7. T (para 9)

8. F (para 10) – Noor doesn’t think she will win a medal; she is going to represent Qatari women and to encourage more women to get into sport.