VOA标准英语2010年-Noisy Vuvuzelas Cause Concern at World

Fans play their vuvuzelas prior to the World Cup group D soccer match between Serbia and Ghana at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, 13 June 2010

The World Cup organizing committee chairman, Danny Jordaan, says South Africa 2010 officials will continue to evaluate whether the plastic horns known as vuvuzelas are affecting play on the field. Players, officials and broadcasters have all complained about the constant din¹ they generate, but FIFA officials say the horns will not be banned.

 

The vuvuzelas make a loud noise comparable to a huge swarm² of bees, and they are blown incessantly³ by fans throughout the matches. While some have defended the instrument as part of the South Africa World Cup experience, criticism has been almost as loud as the vuvuzela itself.

VOA Sports Editor Parke Brewer⁴ is in South Africa to cover the World Cup and spoke⁵ about the impact of the vuvuzelas.

"The vuvuzelas were ever-present," Brewer says. "Those are these meter-long plastic horns that the South Africans love to bring to football games and blow them constantly throughout the games. It is a constant buzz and a constant noise you have to deal with. Not just the fans in the stands, but everybody who has been watching the games on television certainly can tell that that is the case."

Christiano Ronaldo, who plays for Portugal and Spanish football club Real Madrid says the noise disturbs the players' concentration. Parke Brewer says others agree that the vuvuzelas cause problems.

"The noise they made and the broadcasters complaining they could hardly hear themselves talk over the noise,' Brewer adds. "In addition to that, of course, it is very difficult for the players and the coaches to get verbal signals to each other. No doubt about it, it affects the game."

Despite the complaints about the plastic horns, Parke Brewer doubts that vuvuzelas will be banned.

"I think FIFA president Sepp Blatter was very adamant⁶ last year here at the Confederations Cup when these vuvuzelas were a big talk of the tournament," he said. "It is one of those traditions here in South Africa that I am not sure they are going to take away. I think there would be huge protests across the country if they tried to take away their precious vuvuzelas."

Danny Jordaan says the vuvuzelas are being evaluated on an ongoing⁷ basis and that a ban is an option "if there are grounds to do so."  He said he would prefer to have the fans singing or chanting.

 

1 din   

n.喧闹声，嘈杂声

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• They tried to make themselves heard over the din of the crowd.他们力图让自己的声音盖过人群的喧闹声。

2 swarm   

n.(昆虫)等一大群；vi.成群飞舞；蜂拥而入

参考例句：

• There is a swarm of bees in the tree.这树上有一窝蜜蜂。
• A swarm of ants are moving busily.一群蚂蚁正在忙碌地搬家。

3 incessantly   

ad.不停地

参考例句：

• The machines roar incessantly during the hours of daylight. 机器在白天隆隆地响个不停。
• It rained incessantly for the whole two weeks. 雨不间断地下了整整两个星期。

4 brewer   

n. 啤酒制造者

参考例句：

• Brewer is a very interesting man. 布鲁尔是一个很有趣的人。
• I decided to quit my job to become a brewer. 我决定辞职，做一名酿酒人。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 adamant   

adj.坚硬的，固执的

参考例句：

• We are adamant on the building of a well-off society.在建设小康社会这一点上，我们是坚定不移的。
• Veronica was quite adamant that they should stay on.维罗妮卡坚信他们必须继续留下去。

7 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。