英语听力精选进阶版 6126（在线收听）

Ready for the Beijing Olympics 翘首企盼 2008 北京奥运

You might have heard a lot about the Chinese Olympic team competing in the Beijing Olympics, but how much do you know about the British squad?

Team GB (Great Britain), as they are also known, have been training in Macau. The team are using the sports facilities that were used for the East Asian Games in Macau in 2005. Special gym equipment has been shipped in for them and the sportsmen and women are spending a week or so there before they head up to Beijing.

The idea behind the camp is to give the British team time to overcome the time difference between China and the UK. The team also need to adjust to the hot temperatures and the humidity. A tropical storm this week has however affected training.

UK Sport is an organisation responsible for managing the development in sport in the UK and they have set targets for the British team's achievements in Beijing. They want the team to achieve a minimum of 35 medals in total. Sports experts are predicting the British team will exceed this target but only time will tell.

The British team has plenty of strong contenders for medals. Ben Ainslie is a sailor and he is aiming for his third gold medal in Beijing. He has been described as Britain's top hope for a medal.

Katherine Grainger is a female rower and she will lead the women's rowing team. The team have scored other medals including an Olympic silver but they are aiming for a first British women's rowing team Olympic gold.

Everyone is talking about diver Tom Daley. He is only 14 years old and it's a great achievement to make it into the Olympic team at such a young age.

Paula Radcliffe is very well known in the UK for completing marathons in record time. In spite of her achievements, she has not won any Olympic medals, and at 34 years old Beijing may be her last chance. Her participation in the Olympics has however been in some doubt because of a thigh injury.

We wish both the Chinese and the British teams great Olympic success over the next couple of weeks.

GLOSSARY 词汇表

competing 竞争，竞赛

squad （英国）队

sports facilities 体育设施

shipped in 海运

head up 出发

time difference 时差

humidity 湿度

tropical storm 热带风暴

set targets 制定目标

exceed 超出，超越

only time will tell 只有时间能证明

contenders 竞争者

sailor 水手

rower 划船运动员

scored 得到（奖牌）

diver 跳水运动员

to make it into the Olympic team 能进入（英国）奥运代表队

in record time 打破（多项）纪录

in some doubt 不确定的

thigh 大腿