Former Sumo Champion Questions Claims About Mongolia Fire
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A big fire started in a grassland area in Mongolia. The fire moved into China too.
Firefighters worked hard to help wild animals. They guided the animals away from the fire and across the border into China.
Some people said Japanese people caused the fire. A former sumo champion named Asashoryu does not agree with this idea. He said it is wrong to blame only Japanese people.
Asashoryu was a very famous sumo wrestler from Mongolia. He said people should question this story before believing it.
In another news story, a company called KDDI said sorry. Smoke came from a car used by one of its workers. The company said this was not a fishing accident, as some people thought.
Vocabulary15 words
- fire
- when something burns, often fast and dangerous
- grassland
- a big area of land covered in grass
- champion
- someone who is the best or wins a big competition
- question
- to not be sure something is true
- fishing
- catching fish from water
- border
- the line between two countries
- smoke
- grey gas that comes from fire
- blame
- to say someone did something bad
- firefighter
- a person whose job is to stop fires
- wild animal
- an animal that lives free in nature
- famous
- known by many people
- company
- a business that sells things or services
- worker
- a person who has a job
- sorry
- words you say when you did something wrong
- news story
- a report about something that happened
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Quiz
Answer key
1. Mongolia 2. Wild animals 3. False
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Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
A big _____ started in a grassland area in Mongolia.
The fire moved into _____ too.
Firefighters worked hard to help wild _____.
They guided the animals across the _____ into China.
A former sumo _____ named Asashoryu does not agree.
He said it is wrong to _____ only Japanese people.
Asashoryu said people should _____ this story first.
A company called KDDI said _____.
Smoke came from a car used by one of its _____.
The company said this was not a _____ accident.
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