Sports and me! - Unit 13

C1 Advanced · Multiple Matching · Complete Advanced, Cambridge University Press

You are going to read an article about different people's experiences of playing sport. For questions 1–10, choose from the sections (A-D). The sections may be chosen more than once.

Marta

Every member of my sport-obsessed family seems to excel at no fewer than three sports each! As a result, I held the childhood belief that I would be a star at any sport I liked. Nevertheless, I was a reluctant sportsperson by the time I started college – more of a couch potato, really, having tried football and hockey without much enthusiasm. But it soon sank in that I really had no option but to get involved if I wanted a social life – and the basketball team was by far the most sociable. And actually, basketball provided consolation on those occasions when I was facing poor grades and my self-esteem was plummeting to rock-bottom, as it was instantly restored whenever I scored on court. I’d be the first to admit, though, that I wasn’t a naturally brilliant player, so had to come to terms with the fact that I was unlikely do sufficiently well at this sport to get the glowing results I’d imagined. And I’m also far from convinced that basketball instilled a desire to persevere, no matter what, which other players mentioned. But it did add a sense of balance to my life – a welcome respite from studying when I needed it.

Tom

My sports teacher at school always tried to impress on us all the benefits of sport – interacting with others, being part of a team and so on. To be honest, I wasn’t convinced – and anyway, I’d already told myself I was no good at anything physical, borne out by the fact that when it came to captains picking teams, I was conspicuously left till last. As a result, I became more and more desperate to avoid signing up for any sports at all when I started at university. However, when I was finally persuaded by friends to get involved in rugby – together with the tough training – it actually triggered a kind of recovery from all the discouragement I’d felt. What’s more, I actually became far more resilient on the pitch when a match seemed to be heading toward defeat. And I was soon keeping my cool under unbearable pressure, like having to score to win the match. I’d say those learning situations aren’t encountered as frequently away from the pitch as when you’re playing, really.

Levi

Looking back, I have to admit that my general self-confidence was low when I started playing cricket, but I soon threw that off and started taking the game a bit less seriously, like when an umpire’s decision didn’t go our way, for example. And I was lucky – our coach had really innovative methods and never made us feel the only thing worth pursuing was to win at all costs, and that anything else was abject failure. As a result, I was free to hone my technique without fear of criticism, and I began doing stuff to the best of my ability even when it didn’t matter, really helping me enjoy the game rather than worry about it. The other thing about cricket, of course, is that, in comparison with football, say, it requires much more patience. I knew that wasn’t my strong point when I started, and I still haven’t mastered it even now, so whether cricket is really the sport for me is debatable. But I’m still hanging in there!

Sophie

Before I took up tennis, I don’t think I’d fully appreciated to what extent sheer endurance was involved. Matches can last for what seems like hours, and your reactions have to be quick, so there aren’t nearly as many opportunities to switch off as in other sports. I’ve had to develop my ability to focus and the mental training that’s required has stood me in good stead when the going’s got tough with my studies, for example. Most surprisingly for me, though, I missed the camaraderie I’d get from football or hockey – not to mention that shared sense of joy when we actually scored. And you were kind of required to put the team’s collective needs above your own, passing the ball to a better-placed teammate rather than attempting to score the winning goal and cover yourself in glory – and then failing. That didn’t come as naturally to me as to some others. But even so it’s taken a while to adjust to operating without the support of a team, I must say. At least if I win at tennis, though, the victory’s all mine!

found their determination increased when things weren’t going well during a game?

was surprised to discover how demanding it was?

has applied lessons learnt from it to aspects of everyday life?

found it could compensate for disappointments outside of sport?

has had to learn to adopt a different attitude when playing it?

suggests it helped them get over previous negative sporting experiences?

mentions they felt liberated by being introduced to a fresh perspective on it?

regrets the absence of certain aspects of other sports?

accepted that their relative lack of talent meant compromising on their dreams of success?

expresses doubts as to the suitability of it for their character?

Available as a free printable PDF worksheet with an optional answer key.

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