美国国家公共电台 NPR Musher Mutiny, Dog Doping: Scandals Mire The Super Bowl Of Sled Dog Races

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

The Iditarod sled dog race begins today. Mushers and their dogs will spend the next week or so trying to cross a thousand miles of the Alaska wilderness¹. But as Alaska Public Media's Zachariah Hughes reports, this year, the iconic event is mired² in scandal.

(SOUNDBITE OF DOGS BARKING)

ZACHARIAH HUGHES, BYLINE³: Every March, the streets of downtown Anchorage fill with hundreds of sled dogs and mushing fans outfitted⁴ in their finest furs. Then competitors set out on the grueling journey over snowy mountains, icy rivers and frozen tundra⁵ toward the tiny town of Nome on the Bering Sea coast. But this year's race is extra challenging as multiple controversies⁶ have crashed down all at once, even driving one of its stars to post a 17-minute video on YouTube.

(SOUNDBITE OF YOUTUBE VIDEO, "DALLAS SEAVEY STATEMENT")

DALLAS SEAVEY: The Iditarod can try to run me over. They can try to throw me under the bus. But I'm going to be honest to myself. And they're going to find out I don't fit under the bus.

HUGHES: Dallas Seavey is a mushing wunderkind, having won the race four times before age 30. But since last fall, he's been embroiled⁷ in the sport's first high-profile doping scandal after it came out that some of his dogs tested positive for a banned painkiller⁸ at the end of last year's race. Seavey vigorously denies that he drugged his team and has faulted the Iditarod's board of directors for mishandling the investigation⁹ and hurting his reputation in the process. He pulled out of this year's race, hired a public relations firm and has aggressively defended his record in the press.

(SOUNDBITE OF YOUTUBE VIDEO, "DALLAS SEAVEY STATEMENT")

SEAVEY: I believe this was given to my dogs maliciously¹⁰ as - that's one of the options. I think that's the most likely option.

HUGHES: The theory that a saboteur drugged Seavey's dogs is widely accepted among Alaska's mushers. Some believe it could've been a mistake. Some think it might've been a competitor. And others point to animal rights activists¹¹ who have done more in recent years to take down the Iditarod's public image. Colleen O'Brien is vice¹² president of communications for PETA - People for the Ethical¹³ Treatment of Animals. She says they are leaning harder than ever on corporate¹⁴ sponsors to drop their support for the event.

COLLEEN O'BRIEN: One of the biggest lies that the Iditarod community has tried to sell the public is that these dogs aren't like the dogs we share our homes with. And it's not true.

HUGHES: PETA claims that sponsor flight is taking a toll¹⁵ on the Iditarod's financial health. And for the first time ever, they're sending protesters to Alaska for this year's race. On top of all of that, last month, a prominent group of Iditarod veterans demanded that the president of the board of directors resign immediately, saying his mismanagement and conflicts of interest are jeopardizing¹⁶ the whole sport. The demand came on the heels of a confidential¹⁷ report that leaked to the press that said a lot of the same things. Many are pining for the old days when the Iditarod was more like a weekslong wilderness adventure than a race. Stan Hooley, Iditarod CEO, sympathizes.

STAN HOOLEY: There's a big part of me that feels that way, too. Unfortunately, I'm in the business and in the role of working to grow this race.

HUGHES: Some people say that means it's not as fun, that the race doesn't resemble the statewide celebration it used to be. But others say the global audience and more corporate money that it's drawn¹⁸ will carry the Iditarod into the future. For NPR News, I'm Zachariah Hughes in Anchorage.

(SOUNDBITE OF POOLSIDE'S "TAKE ME THERE")

SIMON: If you'd like to hear more on the Iditarod...

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Barking).

SIMON: Down, King. Down, boy. You can find Alaska Public Media's podcast, Iditapod. They take you out on the trail and...

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Barking).

SIMON: ...Inside the race.

(SOUNDBITE OF POOLSIDE'S "TAKE ME THERE")

1 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

2 mired   

abbr.microreciprocal degree 迈尔德（色温单位）v.深陷( mire的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The country was mired in recession. 这个国家陷入了经济衰退的困境。
• The most brilliant leadership can be mired in detail. 最有才干的领导也会陷于拘泥琐事的困境中。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 outfitted   

v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They outfitted for the long journey. 他们为远途旅行准备装束。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• They outfitted him with artificial legs. 他们为他安了假腿。 来自辞典例句

5 tundra   

n.苔原，冻土地带

参考例句：

• The arctic tundra is at the top of the world around the North Pole.北极冻原是指北极点周边的地区，是世界最高的地方。
• There is a large amount of methane gas under the Siberian tundra.西伯利亚的冻土地带之下有大量的甲烷气体。

6 controversies   

争论

参考例句：

• We offer no comment on these controversies here. 对于这些争议，我们在这里不作任何评论。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon. 围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。 来自辞典例句

7 embroiled   

adj.卷入的；纠缠不清的

参考例句：

• He became embroiled in a dispute with his neighbours. 他与邻居们发生了争执。
• John and Peter were quarrelling, but Mary refused to get embroiled. 约翰和彼得在争吵，但玛丽不愿卷入。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 painkiller   

n.止痛药

参考例句：

• I shall persuade him to take the painkiller.我将说服他把药吃下去。
• The painkiller only provides him a short respite from his pain.止痛药仅仅让他在疼痛中有短暂的疏解。

9 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

10 maliciously   

adv.有敌意地

参考例句：

• He was charged with maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm. 他被控蓄意严重伤害他人身体。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His enemies maliciously conspired to ruin him. 他的敌人恶毒地密谋搞垮他。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

13 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

14 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

15 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

16 jeopardizing   

危及，损害( jeopardize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Plans may also become inefficient in the attainment of objectives by jeopardizing group satisfactions. 用危及群体利益方法去达到目标的计划，也是无效率的。
• That boosted government revenues in the short term, but is now jeopardizing them. Morales将天然气工业，电信业和部分采矿业收归国有的举措吓跑了投资者们。

17 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

18 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。