Spain Enjoys Historic Day at European Athletics Championships
Listen to the story
Spain enjoyed a historic day at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, winning two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze medal.
One of the biggest stories of the day was Paul McGrath, a young race walker who is being called a new prodigy of the sport. McGrath is currently studying journalism at university, and he says that his religious faith gives him strength and support in both his sport and his personal life.
After his strong result in Birmingham, McGrath made a bold statement about his future expectations. He said that from now on, winning only a bronze or silver medal would feel like a failure to him. This shows his high level of ambition and his belief in his own potential.
Another major highlight of the day was MarÃa Pérez, who is known as 'the queen of race walking'. She won another gold medal, continuing her impressive record in the sport. Pérez is already looking ahead to the next major challenge: the Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
Overall, it was a very successful day for the Spanish athletics team, with two golds, one silver, and one bronze medal earned in a single day of competition. This result has been described as historic for Spanish sport, and it has raised hopes that more success will follow at future international competitions, including the upcoming Olympics.
Vocabulary8 words
- European Athletics Championships
- a big sports event where European countries compete in running, jumping, and similar sports
- race walker
- an athlete who competes in fast walking races
- journalism
- the job of collecting and writing news
- religious faith
- strong belief in a religion
- expectations
- what someone hopes or believes will happen
- failure
- not reaching the result you wanted
- Los Angeles
- a city in the USA that will host the next Olympics
- international competitions
- sports events between different countries
Quiz
Answer key
1. Four 2. Journalism 3. He would see it as a failure
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Spain enjoyed a historic day at the _____ in Birmingham, winning two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze medal.
One of the biggest stories of the day was Paul McGrath, a young race walker who is being called a new _____ of the sport. McGrath is currently studying _____ at university, and he says that his religious faith gives him strength and support in both his sport and his personal life.
After his strong result in Birmingham, McGrath made a bold statement about his future expectations. He said that from now on, winning only a bronze or silver medal would feel like a _____ to him.
Another major highlight of the day was MarÃa Pérez, who is known as 'the queen of race walking'. She won another _____ medal, continuing her impressive record in the sport. Pérez is already looking ahead to the next major challenge: the Olympic Games in _____.
Overall, it was a very successful day for the Spanish athletics team, with two golds, one silver, and one bronze medal earned in a single day of _____.
Discussion questions
- Why do you think McGrath now considers silver or bronze medals a failure?
- What role can religion or personal beliefs play in an athlete's performance?
- Do you think studying journalism could help McGrath later in his career?
- What qualities do you think make someone a 'prodigy' in sport?