THE ROAD TO SUCCESS

Near the small town of Grottoes, Virginia, a narrow dirt road goes from the house of Stephen Curry's grandfather to the woods nearby. A far cry from the bright lights and shiny courts of the National Basketball Association (NBA), it was along this road that Stephen's grandfather built a simple basket by attaching a piece of plastic to a telephone pole.

Like his father, basketball star Dell Curry, Stephen spent many childhood hours playing on this muddy basketball court. He probably didn't realise it at the time, but it was where he learnt to be creative and flexible as a player. You see, with every shot, the weak plastic backboard gave way. The bumps and rocks that lined the road under the basket caused the ball to bounce in all directions. Knowing where the ball would go wasn't easy. He had to adjust his own playing style as a result. Shooting with great accuracy was another thing he learnt. Only shots perfectly aimed at its centre went into the heavy, thick basket. In this way, practising day in and day out helped Stephen sharpen his skills.

Despite his father's successful career, Stephen was thought by many people, including his high school teammates and coaches, to be too short, too thin and too weak to follow in his father's footsteps. But Stephen carried on. Playing basketball was his dream. He would not give up. He finally ended up playing college ball at a small, little-known school, Davidson College, not too far from where he lived. His creativity and perseverance made him Davidson's star player.

Selected for the NBA in 2009, Stephen joined the Golden State Warriors. He performed beyond everyone's expectations with his accurate shots and continuous efforts. In 2015, Stephen won his first NBA championship, and he led the Warriors to their first championship since 1975.

After receiving the Most Valuable Player award for two years in a row, Stephen explained his philosophy, "I never really set out to change the game. . . What I want to do is just be myself. . . I know it inspires a lot of the next generation and a lot of people who love the game of basketball to value the skill of it, and value the fact that you can work every single day to get better. You've got to be able to put in the time and the work. That's how I got here. That's how I continue to get better every single day. " Inspiring others to have faith in themselves, Stephen Curry is living proof that what other people think of you does not have to influence what you become. Through self-belief, hard work, perseverance and some help from an old hoop, he has demonstrated that nothing is impossible.

As is known to us all,sport is a big part  global culture, and there are lots of sports idioms that have found their way into everyday language.

The English language is full of idioms are thought to have come from football. "Moves the goalposts" means someone (unfair) changes the rules or requirements of a process. "Scoring an own goal" in football means accidentally(kick) the ball into one's own net. Therefore,the idiom means making a bad mistake which unintentionally (harm) their own interests.

Baseball has also given the English language many different idioms. When we talk about rough estimates, we can use (express) like "in the ballpark " or " a ballpark estimate". "Throwing someone a curveball" is used (describe) things that are unexpected and difficult to respond to. "Three strikes and you are out" is often used to talk about situations where you miss three chances.

English also has a large number of idioms(relate) to boxing. If someone makes  unfair and cruel remark, we can describe it as "below the belt". "Throwing in the towel"means admitting defeat  giving up.

The FIFA World Cup attracts worldwide attention. But have you ever considered how watching the World Cup might affect (you) health?

Watching sports might have some positive consequences.   (support) a team can give people a sense of community and boost fans' self-esteem when their team wins. Jason Lanter is a psychology professor at Kutztown University who studies the(behave) of sports fans. Lanter says people feel like they fit in. They know there (be) good psychological and health benefits simply from being part of a group.

On the other hand, however, when watchingintense match like the World Cup, people's pulse can(easy) spike(激增), which could cause heart attacks, especially when their teams lose. On the day in 1998 when Argentina defeated England in the World Cup, 55 more people (admit) to hospitals due to heart attacks, (compare) to an average day in England. British research revealed that apart heart attacks, the excitement, disappointment and flow of adrenalin from watching a national team play might also cause more domestic violence.

John Ryan, a cardiologist at the University of Utah advised people to stay hydrated, stay cool and eat and drink alcohol in moderation. He said those pieces of advicewe found useful for life in general were also useful while we were watching sports games.

Every year, more and more parents complain to their children's schools about PE. They believe that their children shouldn't have to participate in physical activities if they don't want to. Supporters of PE, however, believe that it is a necessary element of all-round schooling and our society's well-being. They insist PE in schools remains one of the few places in which the youth can be forced to participate in aerobic exercise.

Firstly, they believe that participation in sport promotes health. In fact physical education is a springboard for involvement in sports and physical activities throughout life. The government is, or should be, concerned with the health of its citizens. Encouraging physical activities in the young through compulsory PE fights child overweight and contributes to forming lifelong habits of exercise. This doesn't have to be through traditional team sports;increasing schools are able to offer exercise in the form of swimming, gymnastics, dancing, etc.

Besides, physical education helps to develop character and mutual respect required to succeed in an adult environment. Playing team sports builds character and encourages students to work with others, as they would be expected to do in most business or sporting environments. Sport teaches children how to win and lose with good graces and builds a strong school spirit through competition with other institutions. It is often the experience of playing on a team together that builds the strongest friendships at school, which endure for years afterwards.

Finally, the pursuit of national sporting achievements begins in the school. If schools don't have compulsory PE, it is much harder to pick out, develop and equip athletes to represent the country on a wider stage. However, it's much easier to find suitable individuals with a full sports program in every school.

Last, school PE helps select and train potential athletes for national teams. (要点4)