AMERICAN SPORTS AND GAMESBaseball is the most popular game inthe US. It is played throughout the spring and summer by schools, colleges andprofessional teams.Football is the most popular game inthe autumn. There are professional football teams in all the main cities of theUnited States. In American football there are eleven players in each team, asin original football, but the rules are different.Players are often hurt inAmerican football. So the teams wear special clothing and helmets as in hockey.Basketball is a very popular game inthe United States too. It is especially popular in high schools, both amongboys and girls.The game of golf is very popular withbusinessmen and professional people.
It is played by both men and women. Thereare now more golfers than tennis players. Swimming, water siding and skindiving are popular summer sports.In winter many people go in for ice-skating,skiing and hockey if they live in the Northern and Central states.Other sports include wrestling,boxing and horse-racing.MY FAVOURITE SPORTAll kinds of sports and games arecultivated in our country as well as in England, the USA and other countries ofthe world.
Tennis, hockey, volley-ball and football have become very popular inRussia. Football is my favourite sport. The term football is understooddifferently in the US and Britain. For a Britisher football is the same aswhat is known to be ЖХФВПМ in our country.For an American football means rugby , while the game usually played here in Russia is known as soccer .Soccer is played by two teams, equal in number, each consisting of elevenplayers. Tills is, properly speaking, genuine football, the ball being drivenonly by the feet. The eleven players take up their position on the field.
Thecentre forward stands at the centre.On the right are the inside right and theoutside right, on the left are the inside left and the outside left. The threehalf-backs are stationed behind the forward line. The goal is protected by theright back, the left back and the goalkeeper.
No handling is allowed except bythe goalkeeper.Excellent technique, flexible moderntactics and good teamwork are characteristic features of modem football.MY FAVIDAYMany great holidays and anniversariesare celebrated in our country. On the 1st of May there is May Day the holidayof spring and labour. On the 8th of March there is Women s Day the holiday ofall women and girls.We celebrate Day of Independence of Russia on the 12thJune and Day of Russian Constitution on the 12th of December.
Now peoplecelebrate some religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter. But myfavourite holiday is New Year s Day, of course. It is a really wonderfulholiday.People get ready for this holiday long before it. They buy New Yeartrees and decorate them. Every year a fairy-tale comes to every house and everyfamily on New Year s Eve. Children and even grown-ups wait for this day becausethey believe that all their wishes and desires come true and differentwonderful miracles happen on that day. On New Year s Eve people gettogether to see the old year out and the new year in . They eat tasty food,drink champagne, dance and have a good time together.
They wish each otherhappiness and good luck in the new year and put the presents under the New Yeartree.Children like this holiday very much. They wait for New Year presents,which, they believe, Father Frost bring to them. Everybody is merry on that dayand wishes the next year to be good and happy and all one s troubles anddisappointments to remain in the past.LEISUREWhen we have time for leisure, weusually need something that can amuse and interest us. There are several waysto do this. People use radio or television.
They switch on the radio set or TVset and choose the programme they like best. Some people like music. Theylisten to various concerts of modern and old music, new and old songs, and seedances.Those who are fond of sports listen to or watch football and hockeymatches.
These are the most popular kinds of sports. There are a lot of fans amongpeople.They can also see championships in athletics and other kinds of sports.Radio and television extend our knowledge about the world. Television helps usto visit different lands, see new plants, animals, unusual birds, fish andinsects, mountains and valleys, lakes, rivers and seas. We are shown differentcountries, cities and towns and people who live there.
This is what we can doat home.If we want to go out, there are a lotof cinemas, theatres, museums and clubs where we can spend our free time. It isoften difficult to decide where to go in the evening. Newspapers tell us whatis on at cinemas and theatres. If you are a theatre-goer, you will choose aplay you want to see. If you are a film fan, you will go to a cinema. Those whoare interested in music may go to a concert.Some people like to go to discos,some people prefer to go to see their friends or to go to a restaurant.
Oldtraditions are coming to life. In some places they build Huts, on hen s legs ,taverns in the old Russian style, where people can -meet their friends, havepleasant talks, eat Russian food and listen to Russian music. So you can seehow interesting are the ways in which leisure time can be spent.