Italian Swimmers Compete at European Championships
Today is a big day at the European Championships for swimming.
Many Italian swimmers are racing. People call them 'azzurri' because they wear blue.
Swimmer Curtis won a gold medal. She also made a new world record in the 50m backstroke race.
Other Italian swimmers are racing today too. Their names are Quadarella, Ceccon, and D'Ambrosio.
These swimmers are racing in the finals. A final is the last and most important race.
People are watching the races live. This means they watch it happen right now.
Fans want to see if more Italian swimmers can win medals today.
The competition has many different swimming events. Each event is a different type of race.
Vocabulary8 words
- European Championships
- a big sports contest between countries in Europe
- gold medal
- a prize for coming first place
- world record
- the best result ever in the world
- finals
- the last and most important races
- live
- watching something happen right now
- medals
- prizes for winning or doing well in sports
- azzurri
- a nickname for Italian sports teams, meaning 'blues'
- backstroke
- a way of swimming on your back
Quiz
Answer key
1. The European Swimming Championships 2. Won gold and set a world record in backstroke 3. False
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Today is a big day at the _____ for swimming.
Many Italian swimmers are racing. People call them 'azzurri' because they wear _____.
Swimmer Curtis won a _____ medal.
She also made a new _____ record in the 50m backstroke race.
Other Italian swimmers are racing today too. Their names are Quadarella, Ceccon, and _____.
These swimmers are racing in the _____.
People are watching the races _____.
Fans want to see if more Italian swimmers can win _____ today.