Examination Specification Level B2 (Grade 11)

Sport

I have bittersweet memories of school sports. Overall, however, I think they are pleasant enough to silence those who say there is no place for sport in school.
Lessons are fine, but sport makes it a complete education.
Some of my best memories are from the carefree time before secondary education, when sport was fun and the competition element was less important. There wasn’t much pressure, as I recall, and defeat was never a problem.
My passion then was football and, like many boys, I think I just found it wonderful that there was a lesson dedicated to what was basically just fun. Sadly, I don’t remember any formal training at all, although we must have had a referee for matches. Maybe the training existed, but it was just for members of the school team, which was for boys with more skills than I had. I’m sure we did some athletics events like long jump, and I can certainly remember doing quite well in races, though I seem to have forgotten the details about the distances we ran. What I do remember is Sports Day and they definitely gave prizes, if not medals. I’m sure I must have won something, although the details are again lost in time.
It was at secondary school that sport turned into a disappointment. We no longer played football, but rugby and hockey – and cricket in the summer. You could see the hockey pitch from some of the classrooms and I couldn’t wait until I was old enough to try it. But I quickly gave it up, as I did with cricket, because I wasn’t good enough. Rugby was a different story. I must have been quite good at it because I was picked for the team several times and I can even remember scoring. My rugby teacher spoiled it for me though. I loved playing, but training was like a punishment.
The teachers clearly took sport very seriously and it was important for the school’s reputation. We didn’t know it at the time, but the teachers’ jobs were probably on the line if the teams didn’t win enough matches. The main thing we students felt was that if you weren’t naturally talented, they made your life difficult. I wish I loved sport now – teachers should encourage students to love their subject. I think they should have succeeded in doing that at least.

Read the text and circle the correct answers.

1. 
   The writer thinks there is too much / enough sport in school.
   
2. 
   For him, competition made sport more / less enjoyable.
   
3. 
   He would probably have enjoyed more / less football training.
   
4. 
   He seems to have been quite good / bad at athletics.
   
5. 
   He can’t remember if prizes / medals were given on Sports Day.
   

ANSWERS FOR THE READING