French Athletes at European Championships in Birmingham
Listen to the story
The European Athletics Championships are taking place in Birmingham, with several French athletes in action.
Le Clezio and Robert-Michon both had positive results, successfully reaching the next stage of their events.
However, the 800m race brought disappointment for other French runners. Gabriel Tual was eliminated in the semi-finals.
Tual admitted afterwards that he may be putting too much pressure on himself before races. He said this leads to strong self-doubt.
Yanis Meziane also competed in the 800m but failed to reach the semi-finals. He finished as the fastest athlete among those who did not qualify.
Meziane described the result as "frustrating", since he came so close to advancing further in the competition.
The European Championships bring together top athletes from across the continent to compete in various track and field events.
For the French team, the competition has produced a mix of encouraging performances and disappointing exits, which is typical in major international championships where many athletes compete for a limited number of places in each round.
Both Le Clezio and Robert-Michon will now look ahead to their next rounds, hoping to build on their early success.
Meanwhile, Tual and Meziane's exits highlight how tight the competition can be, with even small differences in speed deciding who advances and who goes home.
Vocabulary10 words
- European Athletics Championships
- a big sports event for European countries
- events
- races or competitions inside a bigger sports meeting
- eliminated
- stopped from continuing in a competition
- pressure
- a strong feeling that you must succeed
- self-doubt
- not feeling sure about your own ability
- qualify
- to get the right to go to the next round
- frustrating
- making someone feel upset or annoyed
- track and field
- sports like running and jumping
- performances
- how well someone did in a competition
- advance
- to move forward to the next stage
Quiz
Answer key
1. They reached the next round of their events 2. He puts too much pressure on himself 3. First among non-qualifiers
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
The European Athletics Championships are taking place in Birmingham, with several French athletes in _____.
Le Clezio and Robert-Michon both had positive results, successfully reaching the next stage of their _____.
However, the 800m race brought disappointment for other French runners. Gabriel Tual was _____ in the semi-finals.
Tual admitted afterwards that he may be putting too much _____ on himself before races.
He said this leads to strong _____.
Yanis Meziane also competed in the 800m but failed to reach the semi-finals. He finished as the fastest athlete among those who did not _____.
Meziane described the result as "_____", since he came so close to advancing further in the competition.
For the French team, the competition has produced a mix of encouraging _____ and disappointing exits.