VOA标准英语2010-Former IOC President Juan Antonio Samaran

This 02 Oct 2009 file photo shows Juan Antonio Samaranch, the former IOC president, speaking during the Madrid 2016 bid presentation during the 121st International Olympic Committee session at the Bella Center in Copenhagen

Former International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Juan Antonio Samaranch has died at age 89 of a heart ailment¹.  Samaranch transformed the Olympic Games into a major commercial enterprise and put them on the global map, but the era of his presidency² was also dogged by controversy³.

 

Juan Antonio Samaranch was president of the IOC from 1980 until 2001. 

Canadian IOC member Richard Pound worked with him throughout those 21 years.

"I think he will go down in history as one of the three great presidents certainly in the first 100 or so years of the IOC," said Pound.  "There was de Coubertin who started the whole thing, there was Avery Brundage who saved it during the cold war era, and Samaranch who got it, if you like, from the 19th century into the 21st century."

Samaranch is considered the driving force behind turning the Olympic Games into a popular, commercial, and global event.

When he came to power the IOC was in bad shape financially and politically.  The 1976 Games had left Montreal with a billion-dollar debt and the games were tarnished⁴ by Cold War boycotts⁵ of the 1980 Moscow and 1984 Los Angeles games.

But Samaranch turned the IOC into a financially independent organization with billions of dollars in commercial revenues - and an audience that reaches every corner of the world.

Pound says the momentum⁶ was created in large part by Samaranch's leadership. 

"You had a very good feeling for what it was you were all trying to do together and I think that is a sign of a particularly good leader," added Pound.

Samaranch's presidency, though, was also marred⁷ by controversy.  He was criticized for serving the dictatorship of Francisco Franco in Spain in the 1960s and '70s.  And his critics also said the games had become over-commercialized and riddled⁸ with performance-enhancing drugs during his leadership.

The biggest scandal came in 1998 when IOC members were accused of taking bribes⁹ during Utah's bid to secure the 2002 Winter Games.  The Salt Lake City scandal ended in the sacking of six IOC members and the resignation of another four.

"That kind of stuck to Samaranch because he was the president," explained Pound.  "And I think the same way you get credit for a lot of the good things that happen, sometimes you have to take the heat for things that go wrong, even though you were not personally responsible in any of the wrong doing."

George Washington University Olympic Scholar Lisa Delpy Neirotti says Samaranch's lasting¹⁰ legacy¹¹ is the diversity he brought to the games.  He brought women into the IOC fold, she says, and always ensured funds were available to support countries and athletes in financial need.

"He felt that the more countries that we can get involved participating in the Olympic games helped to meet the mission of the Olympics, which is to bring people together from all parts of the world to improve relations and to make the world a healthier place," explained Neirotti.

Samaranch struggled with health problems during the past decade.  Despite advancing age and regular hospitalization, he remained strongly involved in the IOC after his retirement¹² in 2001.  He campaigned to bring the Olympic Games to Madrid in 2012 and 2016 - but both times the Spanish capital lost its bid.

Pound says Samaranch attended the Olympic Games to the very end.

"He was in Vancouver earlier this year," noted¹³ Pound.  "He looked a little fragile, but he was there and I think he always enjoyed the Olympic games - why not? That is something to which he has devoted¹⁴ a huge percentage of his adult life."

Samaranch is survived by his two children, his son Juan Antonio Jr. - a member of the IOC - and daughter Maria Teresa, as well as his partner Luisa Sallent.  His wife, Maria Teresa, died from cancer in 2000.

 

1 ailment   

n.疾病，小病

参考例句：

• I don't have even the slightest ailment.我什么毛病也没有。
• He got timely treatment for his ailment.他的病得到了及时治疗。

2 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

3 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

4 tarnished   

（通常指金属）（使）失去光泽，（使）变灰暗( tarnish的过去式和过去分词 )； 玷污，败坏

参考例句：

• The mirrors had tarnished with age. 这些镜子因年深日久而照影不清楚。
• His bad behaviour has tarnished the good name of the school. 他行为不轨，败坏了学校的声誉。

5 boycotts   

（对某事物的）抵制( boycott的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Their methods included boycotts and court action, supplemented by'sit-ins". 他们的主要方法包括联合抵制、法庭起诉，还附带进行静坐抗议。
• Are boycotts for other purposes illegal? 至于用于其它目的的联合抵制行动是否也是非法的呢？

6 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

7 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

8 riddled   

adj.布满的；充斥的；泛滥的v.解谜，出谜题(riddle的过去分词形式)

参考例句：

• The beams are riddled with woodworm. 这些木梁被蛀虫蛀得都是洞。
• The bodies of the hostages were found riddled with bullets. 在人质的尸体上发现了很多弹孔。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 bribes   

n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• corrupt officials accepting bribes 接受贿赂的贪官污吏

10 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

11 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

12 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。