Page 26 - In Focus (demo)

UNIT 2

3 Reading skills

A Pre-reading questions

1 Compare the three extreme sports shown in the photos below. How are they similar?

2 If you had to choose, which sport would you prefer to do? Which do you fi nd the
most frightening? Why?

B Reading

Read the text. Highlight an interesting idea in each paragraph.

Extreme Sports, Extreme Risks
Extreme Sports, Extreme Risks

The writer Ernest Hemingway once said, “There are only three sports: bullfi ghting, motor racing,
and mountaineering. All the rest are merely games.” Hemingway’s suggestion is that the only
difference between sports and games is danger. For many extreme sports, danger is also an
important feature. The problem is that extreme sports take this idea too far. Extreme sports are
5 not taught in schools. There are usually no proper lessons or coaches. Because of this, many
people get hurt or even killed doing these dangerous sports.
Climbing mountains is dangerous. People who climb very high mountains typically use ropes
and oxygen tanks. However, some of these athletes choose to climb without safety equipment.
Derek Hersey was one of them. He was called “Dr. Death” because he loved free climbing
10 without ropes. In 1993, he died in a fall while climbing in Yosemite National Park.
Not everyone who does extreme sports is an athlete. Sometimes, people want to achieve their
dreams, but they don’t want to do the hard work necessary. People with only basic skills try
to climb the world’s highest mountains. Sometimes, they even pay to be carried to the top.
But when people go to places without the proper skills, bad things can happen. In 1996, eight
15 people died in one attempt to climb Mount Everest. In just that one season, 15 people died.
Why do people risk their lives in these ways? Is it the desire to go further, faster, and higher than
they have ever gone before? Or is it to be the fi rst to do something diffi cult and new?
Skydiving is another activity for people seeking more
excitement. Extreme skydivers want to do more than simply
20 jump from a plane, open a parachute, and land. They try to
increase the excitement by using a board in the air to do
tricks. They call their sport “sky surfi ng.” Others jump from
buildings, bridges, or cliffs instead of planes. Some put on
special suits so they can fl y like birds.
25 With danger come accidents. Some accidents are caused
by people, while others are caused by the weather. When
accidents happen, search and rescue workers are called to
help. These workers can also become victims of bad weather
and get hurt. For this reason, many people complain that
30 extreme sports are too dangerous. However, despite these
complaints, extreme sports are becoming more and more
popular. There are even whole TV channels devoted to these dangerous activities.
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