西部落：为了奥运

Countdown starts in Beijing

It's just two weeks until Beijing, China, becomes the focus of the sporting world.

Sports stars don’t come bigger than this man and all simply because he is seven-foot-six. Yao Ming is the symbol of China’s lofty¹ Olympic ambitions, and in a country now /is/ searching for new heroes. You might say that Yao is far bigger than Mao.

Yao Ming is the first of a(n) new breed², an international icon³ from a communism nation where individual success has never been so richly rewarded.

He is every inch made in China-the child of two basketball players whose union was encouraged by the government. He is adored⁴ by millions and playing in America. He earns millions. Now it is time to give his country something back.

How much pressure do you feel that you and /an/other Chinese athletes are under to deliver success? It’s a big challenge. We have huge pressure and possible glory. One can’t come without the other. I will try to enjoy it.

Shi Qingyu is only four but knows the same pressures. Hours each week she spent in training. Hours that would become years. Success would mean a childhood sacrifice but the reward---an escape from this that backbreaking life. Her family have known for generations.

Life here is very tough, her step-father tells me. If she can be a champion, it'll change everything for us.

Late at night in the remote mountain village, Qingyu and her team entertain the locals. The Olympics are uniting a diverse⁵ nation. But they have separated this mother from her daughter. Since Xiao Sha left to join the national squad⁶, there have been nine years of newspaper cuttings but barely⁷ any personal contact.

I feel sorry that I couldn’t give her a mother’s love but I believe she is doing the right thing. She is winning /the/ glory for the country.

Shi Qingyu’s quest⁸ for Olympics glory is a decade away. Yao Ming starts in two weeks and the nation expects big things.

John Ray, ITV News, China.

参考中文翻译：

任何体育明星都不会比这个人更有名气，就是因为他身高7.6英尺。姚明在这个寻找新的英雄的国家里是奥运梦想的象征。你 或许会说姚明比毛泽东地位都高。

姚明是NBA里的第一个新的人种，来自社会主义国家的国际形象，在那里，个人的成功收到前所未有的尊重。

他是土生土长的中国人——他的父母是都是政府篮球队的篮球运动员，他受到数百万人的敬仰，在美国打篮球。他每年赚数百万美元。现在是回报祖国的时候。

你和其他中国运动员在追求成功的路上感到压力大吗？这是一个很大的挑战。我们可能获得荣耀，但是压力也非常大。荣耀和压力是相辅相成的。我会试着去享受。

Shi Qingyu 才四岁，但是她也感受到了同样的压力。她每周要花费几小时的时间来训练。每周几个小时，可能要坚持几年。成功意味着要牺牲掉童年的美好时光，但是回报是——摆脱掉累人的生活。这是她的家人世世代代都知道的。

这里的生活非常艰苦。她的继父告诉我们。如果她能赢得冠军，就会为我们改变一切。

晚上晚些时候，在这个偏远的小山村里，Qingyu和其他队员与当地民众一起娱乐。奥林匹克把不同民族的人团结在一起，但是也让母女分离。自从Xiao Sha 离开家人参加国家队以后已经9年了，但是一直没有跟家里见面。

不能给她母爱我感到很遗憾，但是我相信她在做正确的事情。她在为国家荣誉而战。

Qingyu追求奥运会的荣誉已经十年了。姚明两周后就要上场，中国期待着这一刻。

1 lofty   

adj.崇高的，高尚的，高耸的，极高的

参考例句：

• This mountain is lofty.这座山极高。
• His lofty spirit has greatly attracted and activated others.他的崇高精神大大地吸引并且激励了别人。

2 breed   

n.品种，种类；vi.繁殖，产仔；vt.养殖，产生

参考例句：

• The parents are trying to breed their son a musician.这对父母尽力要把儿子培养成为音乐家。
• This breed of horses is both tall and heavily grown.这种马既高且大。

3 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

4 adored   

爱慕，崇拜( adore的过去式和过去分词 )； 非常喜欢

参考例句：

• For all her faults, Tallulah's friends tolerated and even adored her. 尽管塔卢拉有缺点，她的朋友们却宽容她，甚至崇拜她。
• They adored her as a living goddess. 他们把她当作活女神崇拜。

5 diverse   

adj.不同的；相异的；多种多样的；形形色色的

参考例句：

• Spain is a composite of diverse traditions and people.西班牙是一个汇集了多种传统和民族的国家。
• Society is now much more diverse than ever before.当今社会较之以往任何时候都要丰富多彩得多。

6 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

7 barely   

adv.仅仅，几乎没有，几乎不

参考例句：

• The male bird is barely distinguishable from the female.雄鸟和雌鸟几乎无法辨别。
• He took barely enough money to keep the children in bread.他赚很少的钱仅够孩子们勉强糊口。

8 quest   

n.寻求，搜索，追求

参考例句：

• Man will suffer many disappointments in his quest for truth.人类在探索真理过程中必然会遭受挫折。
• His quest for perfection is relentless.他不断追求完美。