Question

What’s the meaning of “dark horse”? It’s someone who wins when no one expects it.

Han Xiaopeng took China’s first gold on snow. He became an Olympic “dark horse” last Thursday by winning the gold medal in men’s freestyle aerial skiing(自由式滑雪空中技巧) at Turin in Italy. He made two almost perfect jumps for the highest score. Han had never won a world gold medal before, let alone(更不用说) in the Olympics!

“I never thought this would happen,” said the 23-year-old. “I feel like I’m in a dream.” It’s China’s second gold medal at the Turin Olympics. But more important, Han’s gold was the country’s first ever in a snow sport. In 2002, China’s Yang Yang won the gold for speed skating at the winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, US.

Just because Han’s win was unexpected doesn’t mean that he didn’t work hard.

Han grew up in Jiangsu Province. Before he started his training on snow, he used to be an acrobat(杂技演员) at a circus. In 1995, a coach found his talent(才能). The coach, Yang Er’qi, said Han had the agility(灵活性) and courage to be a ski jumper. When Yang first took the 12-year-old to northern China, the boy couldn’t swim, skate or ski. But he wasn’t afraid of the high platform(跳台) and kept on training.

Han almost left the sport after hurting his knee months before the Salt Lake Games. In that Olympics he only got 24^th. “I was hopeless at that time, but my family and the coach stood firmly(坚强地) behind me, helping me through,” he recalled.

    Han Xiaopeng worked so hard that he won the gold medal in the Olympics at last. Because of his success, more and more people in China are becoming interested in skiing. We are proud of him and we hope he will have another big success in the next winter Olympics.

(   ) 1. What does ‘dark horse’ mean? It means _____________.

   A. a horse which is dark                 B. someone who is expected to win

   C. a horse which likes living in the dark     D. someone whose win is unexpected

(   ) 2. Where did Han Xiaopeng take China’s first gold on snow?

   A. In China   .    B. In Italy.      C. In America.    D. In Australia.

(   ) 3. What made the coach, Yang Er’qi, choose Han Xiaopeng to be a ski jumper?

   A. He had the agility and wasn’t afraid of the high platform.

   B. He was good at skiing though he was only 12 years old.

   C. He was born in the north of China and liked sports on snow.

   D. He had the talent and he had won a world gold medal before.

(   ) 4. Which of the following sentences is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

   A. He was 23 when he won the gold medal at the winter Olympics.

   B. He made two almost perfect jumps and got the highest score.

   C. No one had won the gold before Han Xiaopeng at the winter Olympics.

   D. He never gave up even though he had faced many difficulties.

(   ) 5. What is the best title for this passage?

   A. A Dark Horse at the Winter Olympics      B. A Wonderful Match

   C. A Hopeless Snow Game                 D. An Exciting Horse Race

Answer 1

1D  2B  3A  4C  5A