The Olympic Games are held every four years in a different city in the world. Athletes from many countries compete in a variety of sports which are divided into winter and summer games.
The Olympics began in Greece more than 2,700 years ago. The games were originally part of a religious festival in honour of the Greek Gods. Eventually, the games became the most important festival in all of Greece.
The first recorded Olympic competition was held in 776 B. C. It was held in an outdoor stadium which was about 200 metres long and 30 metres wide. The stadium was in a valley and about forty thousand people watched the event. The first thirteen Olympics consisted of only one race running.
Since 776 B.C. the games had been held regularly for about 1,200 years. In the year 397 the Olympics were prohibited by the Roman Emperor.
It was not until 1896 that the first Olympics of modern times were held in Athens. From then on the games are held every fou
A. from 397
B. from the 776 B. C.
C. from 1896
D. 2,700 years ago
Passage Four
Every culture and every country in the world celebrates New Year, but not everyone does it the same way. The countries in North America and Europe welcome New Year on January the first. This practice began with the Romans in the Middle East, New Year is when spring begins. People in China and Vietnam celebrate it on the first day of the Spring Festival, which is the first day of their calendar based on the moon. Rosh Hashana, which is the Jewish (犹太人的) New Year, comes at the end of summer. The Hindus (印度教教徒 ) in India celebrate the first day of each season, so they have four New Years.
In all these cultures, there is a practice of making noise. People made noise in ancient times to drive away the evil spirits (妖精) from their homes. Today making noise is more of a custom than a religious rim
In the United States, many people stay up until midnight on New Year’s Eve to watch the clock pass from one year to the next. Friends often ga
A. to keep the evil spirits away
B. to have fun
C. to celebrate the coming of the new year
D. to keep to a custom
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