美文閱讀材料：蘇格蘭傳統體育運動

　　Of all Scottish golfing centres, St. Andrews is the shrine of golfing traditions.

　　在蘇格蘭所有的高爾夫球場當中，圣安德魯斯可以說是高爾夫傳統的圣地。

　　The kings and queen of Scotland themselves shared their people's enthusiasm for playing games. Mary Queen of Scots was accused by her enemies ofplaying golf shortly after her husband's murder.

　　蘇格蘭的國王及王后和他們的臣民一樣熱衷體育。蘇格蘭的瑪利女王就因為她在她的丈夫被謀殺后不久打高爾夫球，而遭到政敵的攻擊。

　　Curling is a game played on a sheet ofice, and Scotland has been its real home since the early part of the seventeenth century . In principle the game very much resembles bowls, but curling is played with heavy flat stones to slide along the ice.

　　冰上溜石游戲是一種在冰上玩的運動。從17世紀早期以來，蘇格蘭成了它真正的故鄉。這一游戲從規則上來說與草地滾木游戲相似，兩者不同之處在于冰上溜石游戲是用笨重的扃石頭在冰上滑動。

　　Like golf, curling can claim to be both Royal and ancient. Tradition has it that the Stuart Kings were curlers, and both Mary Queen of Scots and Damley are reputed to have played.

　　和高爾夫一樣，冰上溜石游戲也具有古老的皇家傳統。傳統上人們認為，歷代斯圖亞特王朝的國王以及蘇格蘭的瑪利女王和她的丈夫達恩利都是此項運動的愛好者。

　　Among games less widely popular, but still played with great enthusiasm, shinty is one of the most traditional. Played with a ball made of cork and leather, and a wooden club,'it used to be popular among all ages, particularly around the Christmas season, but now is usually indulged in only by the more youthful members ofthe community.

　　在雖不太流行但仍擁有熱心愛好者的運動當中，簡化曲滾球是最傳統的一種。做這種游戲，需要一個有軟木和皮革制成的球，和一根木棍。該游戲曾流行于各個年齡的人們當中，尤其是在圣誕節前后。不過，現在進行這種運動的多是些年輕人。

　　Shinty is a fine free game, and the Scottish bag pipes play apicturesque part in the game, marching their teams on to the field of play and hailing their victories with piercmg blasts oftriumph.

　　簡化曲滾球是種不錯的游戲。在比賽時風笛扮演著一種別具一格的角色，它為整整齊齊走向賽場的球隊伴奏，并用響亮的笛聲來歡呼他們的勝利。

　　美文閱讀材料：敢沖敢搶橄欖球

　　To the uninitiated, rugby is a game in which a bunch of powerfully built men throw themselves at one another in pursuit of an oval ball. In fact, this ancestor of modernAmerican and Canadian football can seem more like an organized brawl than a highly technical sport with a complex set of rules. Apart from its sometimes chaotic demeanor, rugby is also unusual among modern sports in that its origins can be traced back to a single, seminal event.

　　在外行的眼中，橄欖球賽只不過是一大群身材健壯的男人相互沖撞推擠，為了一顆橢圓形的球你爭我奪的比賽。事實上，這個現代美國和加拿大地區足球的始祖，看起來更像是一場有組織的爭吵，而不像是遵循復雜規則、講究高度技巧的運動。 與其他現代運動相比較，橄欖球的不尋常之處，除了屢見不鮮的混亂場面之外，還在于它的起源，它可以追溯到某—重要的事件。

　　In 1823, during a soccer game at the prestigious Rugby School in central England, one of the players impulsively picked up the ball and ran with it. The way soccer was played in those days, William Webb Ellis' rash action was practically suicidal. But his novel approach was taken up by other students, who went on to develop a new style of football. Known as Rugby football, it mainly involved throwing and running with the ball rather than kicking it.

　　1823年，一場英格蘭中部享有盛名的拉格公學(Rugby School)舉行的足球賽中，一名球員一時沖動，把球拿起來帶著跑。以當時的足球玩法，威廉·韋伯·艾利斯的魯莽行動無疑是“自尋死路”。但他的這種新打法竟被其他學生接過來，繼而發展成一種新式的足球——被稱為橄欖球(Rugby football)，它以傳球和帶球跑為主，而不去踢球。

　　The game grew in popularity, and in 1871, the Rugby Union was formed in London. It drew up the modern rules for a 15-a-side game using an oval ball. Nowadays, rugby is played in more than 80 countries around the world. As for William Webb Ellis, his spirit lives on. His name has been given to the trophy awarded to the winners of the quadrennial Rugby World Cup tournament.

　　這項運動日見普及，到1871年，“橄欖球聯盟”在倫敦成立，并擬定了現代的規則：每隊15人，使用橢圓形球比賽。現今，世界上有80多個國

　　家舉行橄欖球賽。至于艾利斯本人，他的精神將永存。4年一次的世界杯橄欖球錦標賽的獎杯就是以“威廉·韋伯·艾利斯杯”命名的。

　　For young men in New Zealand, the pinnacle of sporting achievement is widely reckoned to be donning the famous black uniform of the nationalrugby team. Ever since 1905, when the first officially sanctioned New Zealand touring team swept aside all opposition on a tour of Britain, the fearsome All Blacks have retained an aura ofinvincibility that has rarely been overcome.

　　對新西蘭的年輕人來說，運動生涯的最高成就，就是能穿上那套出名的橄欖球國家代表隊的黑色制服。 自1905年第一支正式批準的新西蘭代表隊遠征英國參加巡回比賽并橫掃所有對手、大獲全勝以來，這支令人生畏的“全黑”就保持了幾乎不可戰勝的氣勢。

　　Such is the reputation of the All Blacks that some believe they gain a psychological advantage over their opponents the moment they step out onto the playing field. If such an advantage really exists, it can only be enhanced when, as tradihon dictates, the team performs the celebrated haka before the match kicks off.

　　這就是“全黑隊”的名聲，有些人認為，他們走上球場的那一刻，就在心理上壓倒了對手。如果這樣的優勢真的存在，當這支隊伍在傳統的指引下，在比賽前跳起著名“哈卡”舞時，這種優勢才能得到加強。

　　Haka is the generic term for a traditional dance of the Maori people. Its connection with the game of rugby goes back to the late 19th century,when the New Zealand Native Team performed one on anunofficial tour of Bri.tain. Nowadays, the haka is still led by a player of Maori descent whenever and wherever the All Blacks take the field.

　　“哈卡”是毛利人.種傳統舞蹈的通稱。它與橄欖球運動的聯系可以追溯到19世紀末，新西蘭土著球隊在英國各地進行非正式比賽期間表演了這種舞蹈。現在，不論何時何地，只要“全黑”參加比賽，就會有一名毛利人后裔球員帶頭跳“哈卡”舞。

　　While recent years have seen the All Blacks struggling to match their past successes, the emergence of skillful p_rofessionals such asTongan-bom winger Jonah Lomu ensures that the famous black jersey with the silver fem on the left breast is still able to instill awe in opponents and spectators alike.

　　近幾年，“全黑隊”想努力恢復舊日榮光，球技超群的職業球員如湯加出生的側翼大將喬納-洛姆等的一一出現，可以保證這件著名的左胸前鑲有銀蕨 的黑色球衣還是能讓敵手膽戰心驚、讓觀眾肅然起敬的。