英语听力—环球英语 954 Brad Thorn: A Changed Life

 　　Voice 1

　　Hello and welcome to Spotlight¹. I'm Liz Waid.

　　Voice 2

　　And I'm Ruby² Jones. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

　　Voice 3

　　"Suddenly, you have got money. You can buy a house. You have got a car. People are congratulating you. You feel really great about yourself. And the women notice you more!"

　　Voice 1

　　These are the words of Brad Thorn³. Brad is a top sportsman⁴ in his home country of New Zealand. He plays the game of rugby. This sport is very popular in New Zealand. In fact, some would say it is the country's national sport! There are two kinds of rugby - league and union. And both kinds of game are extremely hard and physical. Brad Thorn has played rugby league and rugby union. And he is a star at both! Today, we tell Brad's story of how success affected⁵ his life in negative and positive ways.

　　Voice 2

　　Brad is originally from New Zealand. But when he was nine years old, his family moved to Australia. It was there that Brad first experienced⁶ success as a sportsman. He was only nineteen years old when he started playing for a major rugby league team called the Brisbane Broncos. And only two years later, he was playing for his local State team. One year after that, the Australian national team manager chose him to play for Australia. Brad was proud to accept this chance to play rugby at the highest level, even if his first game was against the country of his birth - New Zealand!

　　Voice 1

　　Before he knew what was happening, Brad had become a rich and famous sports star! And many things came with his success: money, being famous, parties, girls. At first, Brad found all this difficult to deal with. He remembers:

　　Voice 3

　　"It is a very intense⁷ thing. And you cannot prepare yourself for that. If you receive that sort of money when you are still a young boy at school - it can test your character."

　　Voice 1

　　Brad remembers how he was at that time of his life. He says:

　　Voice 3

　　"I was a pretty wild character. I did not always concentrate on playing rugby. I would drink and go and out with lots of women and behave badly."

　　Voice 2

　　However, Brad was still chosen to represent Australia. And in 1997, he went with the national team to the United Kingdom. The team played three games against the UK's national side. During their stay, most of the team members behaved in a way they thought was normal for rugby players - drinking lots of alcohol⁸, going to parties.  However, one of the Australian players did not behave like this. His name was Jason Stevens. Brad noticed that:

　　Voice 3

　　"Jason was different from the rest of the team. When we travelled away from home as a team, we behaved wildly. But Jason did not do that. I talked to him a lot. Everyone says that you are weak to not drink loads of alcohol. You are weak if you do not have sex with any women. But it is the opposite. Saying ‘No' involves character."

　　Voice 2

　　Brad discovered why Jason was different. Jason was a Christian¹⁰ - a follower¹¹ of Jesus Christ⁹. Jason lived a life that demonstrated¹² Jesus' values and teaching¹³. Part of this was showing respect to yourself by taking care of your physical body. And Jesus also taught how important it is to be faithful¹⁴ to people you have promised to love.

　　Voice 1

　　Brad knew that he was drinking too much alcohol. And it was having a negative effect in many areas of his life - playing rugby, relationships with his girlfriend and family. He wanted his life to change. So he talked to Jason Stevens about it. Brad remembers:

　　Voice 3

　　"Jason said that I should ask Jesus to forgive me for the things that I had done. And that I should ask Jesus Christ to teach me how to live well and follow him. One day, back home, I decided¹⁵ to do what Jason said. I said a prayer. I told Jesus I regretted the things I had done. I asked him to forgive me and help me turn my life around."

　　Voice 1

　　Brad prayed that prayer in 1998. And since that time, he believes that his life has changed for the better. Alcohol no longer controls his behaviour in the way it once did. He can now think much more clearly about what is important in life. He says:

　　Voice 3

　　"I do feel now I have a purpose. I believe that there is a God who loves me. I want to be a good husband and father. And I want to give my best on the rugby field."

　　Voice 2

　　Brad moved back to his birth country of New Zealand in 2001. He got married the year after. These were not the only changes for him! He decided to start playing rugby union instead of rugby league. And, as before, he experienced great success! He achieved the dreams he had when he was a boy. He always wanted to be an All-Black - a member of the New Zealand national rugby team. The players wear black shirts and shorts. And their skill brings fear to every team that faces them! Brad became an All-Black in 2003. And he played for them twenty-four times.

　　Voice 1

　　Brad returned to rugby league briefly¹⁶ for two years in 2005. But he decided to spend the remaining years of his sporting life playing rugby union. This pleased the New Zealand rugby authorities¹⁷. Steve Tew is the head of the New Zealand Rugby Union. He said:

　　Voice 4

　　"We are very happy Brad is staying...He is a special man who works¹⁸ extremely hard and who has a high set of values."

　　Voice 1

　　Brad hopes that his life will continue to have a positive effect on people both on and off the rugby field. He says:

　　Voice 3

　　"I am not someone who pushes his faith on other people. I hope that by just living my life, people will notice the change in me. God has blessed me with being able to play rugby. Every time before I play I just really thank him. It gets hard sometimes. But God has put me here. It is where I am supposed to be."

　　Voice 1

　　The writer and producer of today's programme was Ruby Jones. The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom, the United States and New Zealand. All quotes were adapted and voiced by Spotlight. You can hear more Spotlight programmes on our website at www.radio.english.net. This programme is called "Brad Thorn - A Changed Life."

　　Voice 2

　　Spotlight is on Facebook! just search for ‘Spotlight Radio.' Thank you for listening. Goodbye!

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

3 thorn   

n.刺，荆棘，带刺小灌木

参考例句：

• The little boy stepped on a sharp thorn.那小男孩踩着了一根尖刺。
• The dog had a thorn in its pad.这只狗的爪垫上扎了根刺。

4 sportsman   

n.运动员

参考例句：

• His brother is a sportsman of our school.他弟弟是我校的运动员。
• Everybody thinks he is an all-round sportsman.大家认为他是一个全能运动员。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

7 intense   

adj.认真的，专注的；强烈的；紧张的；热情的

参考例句：

• Susan was an intense young lady.苏珊是一个热情的年轻姑娘。
• The quarrel caused her intense unhappiness.争吵令她极其不快。

8 alcohol   

n.酒精，乙醇；含酒精的饮料

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors.法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。
• The alcohol is industrial.这些酒精是供工业用的。

9 Christ   

n.基督，救世主，耶稣

参考例句：

• I regarded him as the Christ.我把他当作救世主。
• Christ preached that we should love each other.基督在布道中说人们应该互爱。

10 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

11 follower   

n.跟随者；随员；门徒；信徒

参考例句：

• He is a faithful follower of his home football team.他是他家乡足球队的忠实拥护者。
• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。

12 demonstrated   

举行示威游行（或集会）( demonstrate的过去式和过去分词 )； 示范。展示； 显示； 论证

参考例句：

• All of those demonstrated the correctness of his analysis. 这一切都证明了他分析的正确性。
• The fireman demonstrated great courage in saving the child. 那位消防队员在抢救孩子的过程中，表现了极大的勇气。

13 teaching   

n.教学，执教，任教，讲授；(复数)教诲

参考例句：

• We all agree in adopting the new teaching method. 我们一致同意采取新的教学方法。
• He created a new system of teaching foreign languages.他创造了一种新的外语教学体系。

14 faithful   

adj.守信的，忠实的，如实的，可靠的

参考例句：

• They promised to be faithful to their ideal for ever.他们保证永远忠于自己的理想。
• We must be honest and faithful to the people.我们对人民必须忠诚老实。

15 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

16 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

17 authorities   

n.当局，权力，权威；权威( authority的名词复数 )；权力；学术权威；[复数]当权者

参考例句：

• They interceded with the authorities on behalf of the detainees. 他们为被拘留者向当局求情。
• At his instigation we conceal the fact from the authorities. 我们受他的怂恿向当局隐瞒了事实。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。