Michael Scott talks about his success story of going from being a sickly teenager to a London Marathon competitor. Growing up with a heart defect was ficult. While other kids my ‘age were going to footbal practice and on beach holidays with their familie, | was in and out of hospital. My only involvernent in _a sporting competition was watching it onthe television One of my favourite events to watch was the London Marathon. ‘When | was just 14, a man from London, named Chris Brasher, organised the frst London Marathon. twas 29 March 1981 and 7,747 people were Involved in the race. Now, there ‘are 48 500 participants each year rom all corners ofthe world and ‘of ail levels of abilly. Many people say the marathon is the ultimate physical challenge. Ahietes have fo tran physically and ‘mentally for each marathon and be prepared for many ‘challenges. | ways found it surprising to see how many wellrained athletes did not complete the course each year. [2] _] Some ‘dropped out because of injury or inass, Dut most just “it the ‘wall’, an infamous experience sutfered when thei bodies simply ‘ran out of fue. For many runners, by the time they reached the A. Over the years, | watched the event grow into the biggest of 4 its kind in the world. B_| enjoy taking part in the atmosphere and sharing my success story with the other athletes. Three weeks tater, | received my acceptance letter and was ‘over the moon. ‘ D_ The London Marathon Is the most challenging marathon in the world actually crossed the finishing line. (Out of the over 46,000 starters, on average, only 33,000 ‘30 to 35 km point inthe race, they just couldn't go any further. ‘Their muscles would eramp and their heart and lungs could not ‘obtain enough oxygen. Each yea, | ried to imagine what it would be fke to fine up before all the crowds prepared to run the 42.2 kms along roads, Lp hills and around some ofthe most famous sight in London, ‘The race started in Greenwich Park, then competitors would ave along the River Thames, towards Big Ben, and eventually ‘ending in font of Buckingham Palace | decided to talk to my heart specialist and find out there was ‘any chance that | could train my body to handle running 42.2 kms, At fist, he thought | was joking, but soon he realised how important this was to me, At the same time, | started iting weighis to build musce sirengih, (vor the course of a year, | progressed from just walking to running. Running became a dally thing for me and | was building more sirength and confidence with every step. My doctor was thrilled wih my progress and allowed me to continue forward. Finally, at the age of 19, the time came to apply forthe London Marathon. | knew that only a certain numberof people would be ‘allowed to enter the race and as much as | wanted to do this, | ‘knew that my chances were slim. [4] | couldn't believe how far! had come and that ally my dream would come true, My doctor and ! worked together to set outa training schedule that would allow me to safely complete the entire 42.2 kms. Physicaly, | was ft and my heart appeared to be in good conation. ‘On average most of the runners take four to fve hours to complete the race and water is essential to all ‘ofthe competitors. The year before 710.000 bottles of water had been eonsumed during the race! Soon enough it was race day. My family, as well as various ‘irends were ali gathered to watch and support me. [6] —_]1 finished the race in less than six hours, which was amazing since just few years before | was barely able to run across the garden. ‘Today, iam stil running. | have not competed in the London Marathon again but | do volunteer each yeer 1o assist the athletes in any way | can throughout the race. [7[__} 1 Jared that as long 2s | ry my best and have faith in myst) ‘can do almost anything : Explain the words in bold. ‘Then, in pairs, ask and answer questions based on the text. Listening & Speaking 14 Po Listen to and read the text. Which of the following qualities best describe Michael? Discuss in pairs, giving reasons. wn F Ie-was the most difficult and the most exciting and rewarding experience of my life, ee G 1 began walking for a few minutes at a time, increasing my intensity until | was able to walk for 10 minutes a session. H_ The biggest problem would be dehydration, as it would be with all of the competitors. ‘tolerant + courageous + stubborn ‘Michael is very passionate becouse he cared s0 much about the marathon. What would you do if you were Michael? Tell your partner. mooute 1] 11