Question

    Swimming across the English Channel is no easy feat. In addition to the strong ocean currents, swimmers also have to endure extremely cold temperatures. However, don't tell that to Sarah Thomas. The 37-year-oki American recently became the first person ever to swim across it not once, hut four times non-stop!

"I just can't believe I did it/' Thomas told the BBC after the swim. "I'm really just pretty numb. There was a lot of people on the beach to meet me and wish me well, and it was really nice of them, but I feel just mostly stunned."

What makes Thomas's achievement even more remarkable is that just a year ago, in 2018, she was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She said that fighting the strong currents was hard. But even worse was “dealing with the saltwater... it really hurts your throat your mouth and your tongue”, she said. “I got stung(蛰)in the face by a jellyfish. The water wasn't as cold as I thought it might be, but it was still very cold."

Thomas’s record-breaking journey began just past midnight on Sunday, September 15, 2019, when she dove into the waters off the shore of Dover, England. Though the swim was initially meant to be about 80 miles, strong currents forced the athlete to change course several times, lengthening the total distance by about 50 miles. By the time she appeared from the water at 6:30 a.m. local time on Tuesday, September 17, 2019, she had been in the water for 54 hours and 13 minutes and swum a total of 133 miles! Even more impressive, Thomas achieved the astonishing feat in a regular swimsuit. Her only aids were swim goggles, one cap, a nose clip, and earplugs。.

This is not the first time Thomas has swum across the English Channel. She has done it twice before, in 2012 and 2016. She told filmmaker Jon Washer, who is making a documentary about her swim, “As I was doing 20 mile swims, it occurred to me that I could do more and I wanted to see what that more was." The swimmer, who is being praised “an absolute legend" by the CS&PF, has indeed shown the world what she is capable of However, we have a feeling she is not done yet!

1.By mentioning “Swimming across the English Channel is no easy feat", the writer aims to

A.warn people not to swim across it

B.arouse people' interest in swimming

C.set off Sa rah Thomas's achievements

D.stress the difficulties swimmers have to conquer

2.What does the underlined word “stunned" mean in Paragraph 2?

A.Surprised. B.Satisfied. C.Doubtful. D.Regretful.

3.What troubled Thomas most during swimming?

A.Strong currents. B.Sea water.

C.Jellyfish. D.Water temperature.

4.What does Paragraph 4 mainly focus on?

A.The long distance she covered.

B.The ordinary equipment she possessed.

C.The record-breaking time she stayed in water.

D.The impressive determination she displayed.

5.What can we infer from the last Paragraph?

A.A documentary is being made about her achievements.

B.She has swum across the Channel more than once.

C.She will probably plan to swim the Channel in the future.

D.She is capable of doing everything she wants to achieve.

Answer

1.C

2.A

3.B

4.D

5.C

【解析】

本文是一篇记叙文。讲述了37岁的美国人Thomas四次游过英吉利海峡的故事。

1.推理判断题。根据第一段的“However, don't tell that to Sarah Thomas. The 37-year-old American recently became the first person ever to swim across it not once, hut four times non-stop!”（然而，不要告诉莎拉·托马斯这件事。这位37岁的美国人最近成了第一个游过它的人，而且不是一次，是四次。）可知，前文提到游过英吉利海峡不容易，是为了引出莎拉·托马斯的成绩。故选C。

2.词义猜测题。根据上文“"I just can't believe I did it.” Thomas told the BBC after the swim. "I'm really just pretty numb. ”可知，托马斯简直不相信自己做到了，相当麻木，因此推断她说“我只是觉得非常吃惊”，划线词表示“吃惊的”，故选A。

3.细节理解题。根据第三段的“But even worse was “dealing with the saltwater... it really hurts your throat, your mouth and your tongue”, she said. ”可知，托马斯说甚至更糟糕的是对付海水，海水伤害喉咙，嘴和舌头。故选B。

4.主旨大意题。根据第四段的“Even more impressive, Thomas achieved the astonishing feat in a regular swimsuit. Her only aids were swim goggles, one cap, a nose clip, and earplugs。”（更令人印象深刻的是，托马斯穿着普通泳衣取得了惊人的成就。她唯一的辅助设备是泳镜、一顶帽子、一个鼻夹和耳塞。）可推断，辅助设备不充足，托马斯取得了惊人的成绩，因此推断本段主要集中描述了托马斯令人印象深刻的决心。故选D。

5.推理判断题。根据最后一段的“As I was doing 20 mile swims, it occurred to me that I could do more and I wanted to see what that more was." 可知，托马斯说：“当我在做20英里的游泳时，我想到我可以做更多的事情，我想看看更多的是什么”。因此推断她将来可能会再次计划游过这个海峡。故选C。