Sports play an important part in the life of the English people. All sports are very popular among them. The British are proud that many sports originated in their country and then spread throughout the world. The national British sports are: football, golf, cricket, table tennis, lawn tennis, snooker, steeplechase, racing, darts.
Football the most popular game in the world is of two kinds in Britain: association football (soccer) and rugby. Soccer played almost in all countries remains one of the most popular games in Great Britain. Rugby football originated at Rugby public school. In this game players may carry the ball. Rugby is played by teams of 15 men with an oval ball.
Golf, one of the popular sports in Britain, originated in Scotland.
Englishmen are fond of cricket. Cricket is played in schools, colleges, universities. Test matches with other countries are held regularly. The game is very slow.
Table tennis was invented in England in 1880. But the British players are not lucky in tennis international championships.
Wimbledon is known world-wide as the centre of lawn tennis. Wimbledon championships begin on the nearest Monday to June 22, when the weather is fine. The Championships are watched on TV live and at full length by millions of people.
Steeplechase, a cross country running, is popular in European countries. The first cross country race took place in 1837.
Englishmen like all kinds of racing. Horse-racing, motor-car racing, boat-racing, dog-racing, donkey-racing are very popular in England. The most famous boat race in England is between Oxford and Cambridge. It first started in 1820 and has been held almost every spring since 1836. A lot of people come to watch it.
TASKS
I. Match the English word or phrase with its Russian equivalent.
snooker (billiard) -прямая трансляция
lawn tennis игра -«Метание стрелок»
table tennis -гонки
darts -скачки, бег с препятствиями
steeplechase -снукер
racing - теннис
live broadcasting- настольный теннис
II. Here are descriptions of some of the British sports. Match them up to the given sports.
1. In this game players may carry the ball. a) cricket
2. It is a cross country running b) table tennis
3. It first started in 1820 c) rugby
4. The game is very slow. d) boat race
5. It was invented in 1880 e) soccer
6. It remains one of the most popular games in Great Britain f) steeplechase.
I.
1. snooker(billiard) - снукер
2. lawn tennis - теннис
3. table tennis - настольный теннис
4. darts - метание стрелок
5. steeplechase - скачки, бег с препятствием
6. racing - гонки
7. live broadcasting - прямая трансляция
II.
1. c) rugby
2. f) steeplechase
3. d) boat race
4. a) cricket
5. b) table tennis
6. e) soccer