播客

描述

词汇提示

1.conquering 征服

2.veteran 老水兵

3.feat 壮举

4.currents 水流

5.lamprey eels 七鳃鳗

6.corn syrup 玉米糖浆

7.liniment 搽剂

原文

Conquering Lake Ontario

In 490 B. C. the Greek runner Phidippides ran the 24 miles from Marathon to Athens to announce an Athenian victory.

His endurance was so much admired that runners ever since have attempted to run similar long "Marathon" distances.

In the twentieth century, however, long distance swimming has also attracted attention and admiration.

To swim the English Channel or Juan de Fuca Strait between Vancouver Island and the mainland have become challenges for both male and female swimmers.

In September 1954, some Canadian businessman from Toronto offered veteran Californian champion Florence Chadwick $10,000 if she could swim Lake Ontario.

They felt sure that such a feat would attract large crowds.

Chadwick had swum the English Channel in both directions.

However, no one - neither man nor woman - had crossed Lake Ontario.

It was a 32-mile swim through cold water and difficult currents.

Two other women also decided to take up the challenge.

One, Winnie Roach Leuszler, had also swum the English Channel.

The other was a 16 year old girl named Marilyn Bell.

The swimmers traveled to the mouth of the Niagara River on the south side of Lake Ontario.

They would swim from Youngs town, in the U.S.A., and back to Toronto.

Bad weather delayed the swim for several days.

During the night of September 8th the weather cleared, and the swimmers entered the water before midnight.

Guided by her coach's flashlight, Marilyn swam through the dark water and soon passed Chadwick, who was lifted from the water after swimming 12 miles.

Leuszler made it further, but she too eventually had to give up.

Marilyn not only had to overcome her fears of the dark, but she was attacked during the night by blood-sucking lamprey eels.

She was able to knock these off with her fist.

As dawn approached, the winds and waves increased, and Marilyn's weariness mounted.

Her coach, Gus Ryder, passed her some corn syrup on a stick, and later gave her liniment for her tired legs.

He wrote messages on a blackboard to encourage her to keep going.

Sometimes, he tricked her into thinking that she was nearer to the shore than she was.

Marilyn fell asleep in the water twice and had to be awakened.

The second time, a friend of hers jumped into the water beside her, and swam with her for a distance.

Because Marilyn's strength was declining, she was being pushed off course by the currents.

Although the direct route was 32 miles, Marilyn swam a total of 45 miles.

The last few miles were extremely difficult.

Marilyn's family and the lifeguards felt that she should be taken out of the water.

But her coach threatened to quit as her coach if the swimmer gave up.

It was getting dark again, and the swimmer was barely conscious as she approached the shore.

Thousands of people lined the shore hoping to touch her or get a picture of her.

Marilyn's supporters had to push the crowds back so they wouldn't stop her from touching the shore.

Finally, after 21 hours in the water, Marilyn reached land.

The exhausted girl was rushed to an ambulance.

She had lost about 20 pounds of her 120 pounds weight in the crossing.

Finally she was able to sleep.

Huge crowds came out to see her the next day,and two days later there was a parade in her honor through the streets of Toronto.

Everyone admired the courage and endurance of the 16 year-old girl,who became the first person to swim across Lake Ontario.

翻译

征服安大略湖

公元前490年，希腊选手菲迪皮德斯从马拉松到雅典跑了24英里，宣布雅典获胜。
他的耐力是如此令人钦佩，以至于从那以后，跑步者们都尝试跑类似的“马拉松”长跑。
然而，在二十世纪，长距离游泳也引起了人们的关注和钦佩。
在温哥华岛和大陆之间的英吉利海峡或胡安·德富卡海峡游泳对男女游泳运动员来说都是挑战。
1954年9月，一位来自多伦多的加拿大商人向加州老牌冠军弗洛伦斯·查德威克（Florence Chadwick）提供了10000美元，如果她能游安大略湖的话。
他们确信这样的壮举会吸引大批观众。
查德威克在英吉利海峡上游了两个方向。
然而，没有人——无论男女——穿过安大略湖。
这是一次32英里的游泳，穿过冰冷的海水和湍急的水流。
另外两名女性也决定接受挑战。
其中一位，温妮·罗奇·卢斯勒（Winnie Roach Leuszler）也曾游过英吉利海峡。
另一个是一个名叫玛丽莲·贝尔的16岁女孩。
游泳者游到了安大略湖南侧的尼亚加拉河口。
他们将从美国的扬斯镇游回多伦多。
恶劣的天气使游泳推迟了好几天。
9月8日夜间，天气转晴，游泳运动员在午夜前下水。
在教练手电筒的指引下，玛丽莲在黑暗的水中游泳，很快就经过了查德威克，查德威克在游了12英里后被从水中抬了出来。
卢斯勒做得更进一步，但她最终也不得不放弃。
玛丽莲不仅要克服对黑暗的恐惧，而且在晚上还被吸血的七鳃鳗袭击。
她能用拳头把这些打下来。
随着黎明的临近，风浪越来越大，玛丽莲的疲惫感也越来越重。
她的教练古斯·莱德（Gus Ryder）在一根棍子上递给她一些玉米糖浆，后来给她涂了搽剂，以治疗她疲惫的腿。
他在黑板上留言鼓励她坚持下去。
有时，他欺骗她，使她认为自己比实际离海岸更近。
玛丽莲在水中睡着了两次，不得不被唤醒。
第二次，她的一个朋友跳到她身边的水里，和她一起游了一段距离。
因为玛丽莲的力量在下降，她被水流推离了航道。
虽然直接路线是32英里，但玛丽莲总共游了45英里。
最后几英里非常艰难。
玛丽莲的家人和救生员认为她应该被带出水面。
但她的教练威胁说，如果这位游泳运动员放弃，她将辞去教练的职务。
天又黑了，游泳运动员接近岸边时几乎没有知觉。
成千上万的人在岸边排队，希望能触摸她或拍到她的照片。
玛丽莲的支持者不得不把人群往后推，以免阻止她上岸。
最后，在水中21个小时后，玛丽莲到达了陆地。
筋疲力尽的女孩被紧急送往救护车。
她在穿越中减掉了120磅体重中的20磅。
她终于可以睡觉了。
第二天，大批群众出来看她，两天后，在多伦多街头举行了一场为她举行的游行。
每个人都钦佩这位16岁女孩的勇气和耐力，她成为第一个横渡安大略湖的人。

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