【有声阅读空间】黑色闪电欧文斯

 JesseOwens was the son of a sharecropper and the grandson of a slave. But he had theworld’s attention at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, when he left Hitler’s Aryan supremacytheories in the dust and collected four individual gold medals.

Owenswas still at high school when he equaled the world record for the hundred yarddash. At Ohio State University he became known as the “Buckeye Bullet” and wona record eight championships. However, as an African-American student, he wasforced to live off-campus and America’s racial laws also forbade him to eat outwith white teammates when the athletics¹ team traveled around the United States.But the determined² athlete could not be held back, and on May 25, 1935, he astoundedAmerica by equaling the world record for the hundred yard dash and settingworld records in the long jump, the 220 yard dash and the 220 yard low hurdles³.This set him up as a force to be reckoned with at the 1936 Olympics.

AdolfHitler planned to use the Berlin Olympics to showcase the superiority ofGermany’s Aryan people, but Owens’ extraordinary achievements put paid to that,and by the end of the Games the Germans themselves were cheering him on.

 

 

Afterthe Games, Owens returned to the States to follow up on some potentialendorsement deals rather than competing in Sweden with the rest of the team.Sporting authorities revoked⁴ his amateur status ending his athletics career.But Owens was unrepentant, as he did not receive any sporting scholarships andneeded to support his young family. Unfortunately, prejudice made it impossiblefor a black athlete to make a living from endorsements⁵, so Owens turned toprofessional running, taking part in stunts⁶ such as racing⁷ a horse in Cuba. Hewon by 20 yards. Owens later said, “People say that it was degrading for anOlympic champion to run against a horse, but what was I supposed to do? I hadfour gold medals, but you can’t eat four gold medals.”

 

Thegreat sprinter⁸ struggled to get by when his running days were over, going intothe dry cleaning business and even working as a gas station attendant. But inthe late 1960’s he started to carve a name for himself as a good willambassador, spreading the message that with determination anyone could achievegreatness. He participated in events such as the opening of the AmericanEmbassy in the Ivory Coast in 1971, where the street was renamed in his honour.The mayor of Abidjan said calling the street Rue⁹ Jesse Owens celebrated¹⁰ theathlete’s achievements and commemorated¹¹ his contribution to disproving Naziracialist theory.

 

 

In1976, US President Gerald Ford¹² awarded him a Medal of Freedom, the nation’shighest civilian¹³ honour. Four years later, following Owen’s death, PresidentJimmy Carter paid tribute. “Perhaps no athlete better symbolized¹⁴ the humanstruggle against tyranny, poverty and racial bigotry,” Carter said. “His workwith young athletes as an unofficial ambassador overseas and a spokesman forfreedom are a rich legacy¹⁵ to his fellow Americans.”

1 athletics   

n.运动，体育，田径运动

参考例句：

• When I was at school I was always hopeless at athletics.我上学的时候体育十分糟糕。
• Our team tied with theirs in athletics.在田径比赛中，我们队与他们队旗鼓相当。

2 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

3 hurdles   

n.障碍( hurdle的名词复数 )；跳栏；（供人或马跳跃的）栏架；跨栏赛

参考例句：

• In starting a new company, many hurdles must be crossed. 刚开办一个公司时，必须克服许多障碍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There are several hurdles to be got over in this project. 在这项工程中有一些困难要克服。 来自辞典例句

4 revoked   

adj.[法]取消的v.撤销，取消，废除( revoke的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It may be revoked if the check is later dishonoured. 以后如支票被拒绝支付，结算可以撤销。 来自辞典例句
• A will is revoked expressly. 遗嘱可以通过明示推翻。 来自辞典例句

5 endorsements   

n.背书( endorsement的名词复数 )；（驾驶执照上的）违章记录；（公开的）赞同；（通常为名人在广告中对某一产品的）宣传

参考例句：

• He must make much money on those tennis shoe endorsements he does. 他替那些网球鞋珍重广告，就赚了不少钱。 来自互联网
• But celebrity endorsements remain an important promotional tool for marketers. 尽管如此，邀明星助阵仍是营销人员重要的推广手段之一。 来自互联网

6 stunts   

n.惊人的表演( stunt的名词复数 )；（广告中）引人注目的花招；愚蠢行为；危险举动v.阻碍…发育[生长]，抑制，妨碍( stunt的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He did all his own stunts. 所有特技都是他自己演的。
• The plane did a few stunts before landing. 飞机着陆前做了一些特技。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

8 sprinter   

n.短跑运动员，短距离全速奔跑者

参考例句：

• He is more a sprinter than a swimmer. 他是短跑健将，而不是游泳选手。 来自辞典例句
• The sprinter himself thinks he can run the race at 9.4 seconds. 这位短跑运动员自认为可以用9.4秒跑完比赛。 来自互联网

9 rue   

n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔

参考例句：

• You'll rue having failed in the examination.你会悔恨考试失败。
• You're going to rue this the longest day that you live.你要终身悔恨不尽呢。

10 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

11 commemorated   

v.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Lincoln commemorated the soldiers killed in the battle in his address. 林肯在演说中表扬阵亡将士。 来自辞典例句
• You'll be commemorated for killing a spy, and be specially discharged. 你们每杀一个间谍将会被记录到特殊档案。 来自电影对白

12 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

13 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

14 symbolized   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• For Tigress, Joy symbolized the best a woman could expect from life. 在她看，小福子就足代表女人所应有的享受。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• A car symbolized distinction and achievement, and he was proud. 汽车象征着荣誉和成功，所以他很自豪。 来自辞典例句

15 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。