世界小史 第76期:希腊

 　　But one thing united the Greeks: their religion and their sport.

　　但只有一件事情把希腊联合在一起了：他们的信仰和体育运动。

　　And I say 'one thing' because, strangely enough, sport and religion weren't two separate things – they were closely connected.

　　太奇怪了，我说“一件事情”，因为体育和宗教是两件密不可分的事情——他们紧密相连。

　　For instance, in honor of Zeus, the Father of the Gods, great sporting contests were held every four years in his sanctuary¹ at Olympia.

　　例如，为了纪念众神之父宙斯，人们每隔四年在其圣地奥林匹亚举行一次盛大的运动会。

　　As well as large temples there was a stadium at Olympia, and all the Greeks – the Dorians, Ionians, Spartans² and Athenians,

　　奥林匹亚那里还有巨大的神庙和一座体育场，所有的希腊人——多里安人、伊安尼尔人、斯巴达人和雅典人,

　　came there to show how well they could run, throw the discus and the javelin³, fight hand to hand and race chariots.

　　都来到那里以显示他们在跑步、掷铁饼、投标枪、摔跤和赛车方面的才能。

　　To be victorious⁴ at Olympia was the greatest honor in a man's life.

　　在奥林匹亚获得胜利被认为是一个人一生中最大的荣耀。

　　The prize was no more than a simple garland made from sprigs of wild olive,

　　奖赏仅仅是一个用野橄榄树树枝做成的花环，

　　but what fame for the winners: the greatest poets sang their praises, the greatest sculptors⁵ carved their statues to stand forever in Olympia.

　　但获胜者得到很大的名望：最著名的诗人为他们唱赞美诗，最著名的雕塑家塑造他们的雕像来代表曾经的奥林匹克。

　　They were shown in their chariots, throwing the discus, or rubbing oil into their bodies before the fight.

　　在这些雕像上，人们看到他们驾战车、掷铁饼，或也在比赛前他们用油擦身体。

　　Victory statues like these can still be seen today – there may even be one in your local museum.

　　这样的优胜者雕像，人们至今还可以见到——也许在你们当地的博物馆里也有一座这样的雕像。

1 sanctuary   

n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区

参考例句：

• There was a sanctuary of political refugees behind the hospital.医院后面有一个政治难民的避难所。
• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。

2 spartans   

n.斯巴达（spartan的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The ancient Spartans used to expose babies that they did not want. 古斯巴达人常遗弃他们不要的婴儿。
• But one by one the Spartans fell. 可是斯巴达人一个一个地倒下了。

3 javelin   

n.标枪，投枪

参考例句：

• She achieved a throw of sixty metres in the javelin event.在掷标枪项目中，她掷了60米远。
• The coach taught us how to launch a javelin.教练教我们投标枪。

4 victorious   

adj.胜利的，得胜的

参考例句：

• We are certain to be victorious.我们定会胜利。
• The victorious army returned in triumph.获胜的部队凯旋而归。

5 sculptors   

雕刻家，雕塑家( sculptor的名词复数 )； [天]玉夫座

参考例句：

• He is one of Britain's best-known sculptors. 他是英国最有名的雕塑家之一。
• Painters and sculptors are indexed separately. 画家和雕刻家被分开，分别做了索引。