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Upper-Intermediate Instant Lesson™

Swim Suited

Pre-Reading Activities

A: Quiz
The Summer Olympics Games, the largest sporting event in the world, is approaching fast (August 8, 2008). Do you consider yourself an Olympic Games expert? With a partner, answer the questions to this Olympic Games Quiz. Good luck.

1. This year's summer Olympics are being held in... 2. The Summer Olympic Games are held every...

A. Athens, Greece;
B. Beijing, China;
C. Salt Lake City, USA;
D. Sydney, Australia.
A. year;
B. 2 years;
C. 4 years;
D. 5 years.

3. The most expensive ticket at the Olympics is for... 4. At the ancient Olympic Games held at Olympia winners were presented with

A. Swimming;
B. The opening ceremony;
C. Women's gymnastics;
D. Men's basketball. A. An olive branch;
B. An olive;
C. An olive wreath;
D. A bunch of flowers.

5. When were athletic events for women introduced? 6. Which two sports did the ancient Greek games consist of?

A. 1908;
B.1928;
C. 1938;
D. 1958. A. Athletics and wrestling;
B. Swimming and boxing;
C. Archery and gymnastics;
D. Fencing and tennis.

7. When were the Olympic Games first televised? 8. Who was the first gymnast to receive a perfect score of 10?

A. 1936 in Berlin, Germany;
B. 1956 in Melbourne, Australia;
C. 1960 in Rome, Italy;
D. 1968 in Mexico City, Mexico. A. Olga Korbut (USSR);
B. Nadia Comaneci (ROM);
C. Mary Lou Retton (USA);
D. Koji Gushiken (JPN).

B: Group Discussion
Discuss the following questions in small groups.

1. Because competitors are evenly skilled at the world-class level, athletes (sports people) are often looking for ways to get an advantage over their opponents. There has been lots of talk of athletes using illegal drugs to enhance or improve their performance. Can you think of other things that athletes have used in an effort to enhance their performance?
2. Do you believe athletes should be allowed to use new equipment that might give them an advantage over their opponents? Or do you believe everyone should compete using the same type of equipment?

Reading Activities

A: Comprehension
Read the questions below and then look for the answers in the article.

What have swimmers wearing bodysuits done?

Which manufacturing company makes them?

How much do the bodysuits cost?

What is FINA worrried about?

Swim officials to tackle suit issues

EINDHOVEN, Netherlands, Mar 24, (Reuters) - Top swimming officials are to have talks with manufacturers next month after a cascade of world records have been set using bodysuits.

From the United States to Australia via Eindhoven, 11 world records have been set since February 16 in Speedo's new LZR Racer bodysuit. Frenchman Alain Bernard demolished the old sprint freestyle order in Eindhoven, breaking three world records in the space of three days in the Speedo suit.

With the Beijing Olympics looming in August, coaches and officials are worried the swimming world could be split into those who have access to the $550 suit and those who do not.

The latter could miss out because the suit may not be immediately available to all or because their national federations are contracted to other manufacturers.

Swimming's world governing body FINA approved the suit last year but has called for the meeting with manufacturers during next month's world short-course championships in Manchester.

Cornel Marculescu, executive director of Lausanne-based FINA, said there were two main issues: the thickness of the suit and availability.

Marculescu told SwimNews Web site (www.swimnews.com) there were concerns about buoyancy issues. "We have to review this. But there is no scientific test to say if a suit supports performance," he said on Monday.
"The number one priority is that all suits are made available to everyone at the moment of launch. Any innovation should be available to everybody."
SUIT CONTROVERSY
Bodysuits caused controversy from their genesis about a decade ago, with arguments over whether they broke rules outlawing buoyancy. FINA gave the green light in 2000.

Massive sums are poured into the technology of suit development.

The Speedo suit boasts stabilizing supports to maintain body position, panels to give a streamlined shape and reduce drag, and a strong, light fabric to reduce muscle oscillation and skin vibration.

Other manufacturers offer suits with special properties of their own and they too have had their successes, including victories at these championships.

Arena, with world and Olympic champion Laure Manaudou in their line-up, launched their new R-Evolution suit in Eindhoven, and adidas, the brand once worn by the mighty Ian Thorpe, will unveil their new suit shortly.

Bernard's French federation is contracted to rival manufacturer Tyr but, like some other federations, allows swimmers to make their own choice of suit.

Glossary:
demolish - knock down or break
access - the opportunity to use
buoyancy - the ability of something to float in water
unveil - show for the first time

Article © 2008 Reuters Limited. Lesson © 2008 www.english-to-go.com

B: True or False
Decide whether these statements are true or false according to the article.

1. Bernard was wearing a new kind of bodysuit when he set new world records in Eindhoven.
2. Swimmers may be prevented from wearing the new bodysuit because their swimming body's rules do not allow it.
3. It is still unknown whether the bodysuit makes a swimmer go faster.
4. Swimmers have been allowed to wear bodysuits for more than five years.
5. The Speedo suit is not the only suit being worn by successful swimmers.

C: Working With Unknown Words
1. Work alone. Choose six words from today's article that you do not know the meaning of. Then try to guess their meanings thinking about a. what kind of word they are (noun, verb etc) and any prefixes or suffixes, b. any information that other words in the sentence give you about this word, c. any information that the paragraph the word is in gives you about the word.

2. Show your words to another student. Talk about what you think the words mean.

3. Check your guesses in a dictionary.

D: Reading Carefully
What do the following extracts from today's article mean? Use your own words when answering.

1. '"The number one priority is that all suits are made available to everyone at the moment of launch. Any innovation should be available to everybody."'

2. "FINA gave the green light in 2000."

3. "Massive sums are poured into the technology of suit development."

4. "Other manufacturers offer suits with special properties of their own..."

Post-Reading Activities
You may do one or more of these.
A: Research
Part One: China is hosting this year's Olympics. What do you know about China? In a small group choose one aspect of China you would like to research (e.g. Chinese animals, Chinese geography, Chinese culture, etc.), do a key word search on the web or in your library, find the information you are looking for, and take notes from that information.

Part Two: Using the information your group has found, create ten interesting multiple choice questions. (See Pre-Reading Activity A. If you prefer, you can offer three possible answers rather than four.) Have fun.

B: Quiz Show
You, as a class, are now ready to conduct your own quiz show. Each group will get a chance to ask their questions to other students in the class. Listen to your teacher as he/she describes the rules of the quiz show.

C: Debate
You are going to prepare to debate the following topic:
The Olympics are a waste of time and money.
Divide into teams. Work together to prepare your arguments and discuss what your different roles are. Then debate the topic with an opposing team.

TEACHERS' NOTES AND ANSWER KEY
Pre-Reading Activities

A: Quiz - Answers
1.D; 2.B; 3.B; 4.C; 5.B; 6.A; 7.A; 8.B.
Reading Activities
A: Comprehension - Answers
1. Set new world records.
2 Speedo
3. $550
4. That the suits may only be available to those who can afford them and that some swimmers may not be able to wear them because they are contracted to wear a rival sporting manufacturer's suits.

B: True or False - Answers
1. True, 2. True, 3. True, 4. True, 5. True.

D: Reading Carefully - Answers
1. It's most important that all swimmers have the opportunity to use a newly created swimsuit. Everyone should have access to any improvement.
2. In the year 2000 FINA said that swimmers were permitted to wear bodysuits.
3. Large amounts of money are spent on trying to develop new swimsuits with improved features.
4. Other companies have swimsuits with features that make them special.

Post-Reading Activities
A: Research - Notes
The Quiz Show (described in Post-Reading Activity B) works well in a large class. Students will need to work in the same groups to do both Part A and B Post-Reading Activities. If you have a large class, it would be best to divide them into at least three groups to do their research. If you have between 1 - 9 students, again divide them into three. Depending on your class size, you may have some individuals, some pairs or some groups.

B: Quiz Show - Notes
Quiz Show Rules
1. Select a group to read their questions and possible answers aloud to the other groups. (Students in the selected group can rotate asking questions.)

2. Students from the other groups raise their hands if they think they know the answer. The first student to raise their hand gets to try to answer the question.

3. If the student answers correctly, their team gets a point. If not, a student from another team can raise their hand and guess from the remaining answers.

4. When the first group has asked all ten questions, it is time for the second group to ask their questions. The first group then joins the other groups in trying to answer questions.

5. When all of the teams have asked their questions, the team with the most number of correct answers is the winner of the quiz show. (Be sure someone keeps score!)

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1. This year's summer Olympics are being held in...		2. The Summer Olympic Games are held every...
	A. Athens, Greece; B. Beijing, China; C. Salt Lake City, USA; D. Sydney, Australia.		A. year; B. 2 years; C. 4 years; D. 5 years.
3. The most expensive ticket at the Olympics is for...		4. At the ancient Olympic Games held at Olympia winners were presented with
	A. Swimming; B. The opening ceremony; C. Women's gymnastics; D. Men's basketball.		A. An olive branch; B. An olive; C. An olive wreath; D. A bunch of flowers.
5. When were athletic events for women introduced?			6. Which two sports did the ancient Greek games consist of?
	A. 1908; B.1928; C. 1938; D. 1958.		A. Athletics and wrestling; B. Swimming and boxing; C. Archery and gymnastics; D. Fencing and tennis.
7. When were the Olympic Games first televised?		8. Who was the first gymnast to receive a perfect score of 10?
	A. 1936 in Berlin, Germany; B. 1956 in Melbourne, Australia; C. 1960 in Rome, Italy; D. 1968 in Mexico City, Mexico.		A. Olga Korbut (USSR); B. Nadia Comaneci (ROM); C. Mary Lou Retton (USA); D. Koji Gushiken (JPN).