📙 Part 2: Describe a sports event that you would like to attend as part of the audience

This episode's vocabulary

Firsthand (adverb) – by experiencing something directly rather than hearing about it. → I wanted to see the festival firsthand instead of watching it online.

Go up against (phrasal verb) – to compete or face someone in a challenge. → Our team will go up against the champions next week.

Once-in-a-lifetime (adjective) – extremely rare and unlikely to happen again. → Seeing the northern lights was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Vicariously (adverb) – experiencing something through another person rather than directly. → I live vicariously through my sister's travel photos since I can't afford to travel.

Electrifying (adjective) – extremely exciting and thrilling. → The concert atmosphere was absolutely electrifying.

Atmosphere (noun) – the mood or feeling created in a particular place or situation. → The café has a really cozy atmosphere that makes you want to stay longer.

Cheering on (phrasal verb) – encouraging and supporting someone enthusiastically. → The fans were cheering on their team throughout the match.

Catch up on (phrasal verb) – to learn about or do something you missed. → I need to catch up on the news after being away for a week.

Huge fan (noun phrase) – someone who is very enthusiastic about something. → I'm a huge fan of traditional music and attend concerts regularly.

Join in (phrasal verb) – to participate or become involved in an activity. → Everyone was singing, so I decided to join in.

Overwhelming (adjective) – so intense or large that it's difficult to handle. → The amount of information was overwhelming at first.

Memorable (adjective) – worth remembering; making a lasting impression. → My graduation ceremony was one of the most memorable days of my life.

Immersive (adjective) – providing a deeply engaging experience. → The museum offers an immersive exhibition with interactive displays.

Perspective (noun) – a particular way of viewing or understanding something. → Traveling gives you a different perspective on life.

Anticipation (noun) – excited expectation about something that will happen. → The anticipation before the exam results was nerve-wracking.

Questions and Answers

Maria: You should say what it is, who you want to watch it with, why you want to be part of the audience, and explain how you feel about it.

Rory: I'd quite like to see how things are at the Olympics first hand, if I could. It's this big international sports competition where different athletes from around the world go up against each other in various events. I think it happens about once every four years in a major city. Well, cities, I suppose, since there's a summer and a winter Olympics, and I'm pretty sure they happen in different places. I think the last ones were in France or various French territories, because they couldn't have surfing in Paris, for example. I think they needed to have it in a different place. Anyway, ideally, I'd like to go in the summer, well the summer one, since it would be a good chance to travel and have a nice time in the sun while seeing a once-in-a-lifetime event like that. Plus, I already live in a country that is usually cold, so I don't think I'd be missing much if it were the winter Olympics.

When it comes to who I'd go with, I'm not really sure. Maybe just by myself or some close friends who are into certain sports, then I can kind of live vicariously through their excitement with things, because I'm not a huge sports fan. That's just one of the reasons I'd like to be in the crowds. There's also the atmosphere that such an event might generate, as people are cheering on their nation's teams to win at various events. That must be pretty electrifying. And like I said, it's something that only happens once in your lifetime. Even if it's once every four years, it always happens in different places, and the style and management of the event is always different. So it's always unique. Or it seems that way, at least. I'm not really an expert.

While it would be good fun to go and see what happens with the various sports, like diving and running, if I don't get to go and see it, I won't be too upset. After all, these things are always recorded these days, so it's easy to catch up on what actually happened. It is fun to dream about what might be, though.

Maria: And what about your friends? Would they like to join in?

Rory: I think they'd probably like to go more than I would.

Discussion

Maria: So, dear listener, a sports event. Hmm. Rory has chosen to talk about the Olympics. So the Olympic Games. You can talk about a football match. I think that would be the easiest option. Rory, would you agree?

Rory: No, I think the Olympics is the easiest, because everybody knows about the Olympics, so you could always say something about that.

Maria: Yeah, that's true. Or, like, your local football match.

Rory: Okay. Maybe slightly less interesting.

Maria: And you can say that I'd quite like to see how things are at the Olympics, or I'd love to see the Olympics one day. Because the Olympics happen every four years, right?

Rory: I think so. I'm not a big expert in this, but as far as I know, that's what happens.

Maria: Yeah, and we have, like, summer and winter Olympics. So the Olympics or the Olympic Games. And it's a big international sports competition. I'd love to see different athletes. So sportsmen, sportswomen. We have one word – athletes. A very good word for essays as well, when you write about sport. Athletes. A-T-H-L-E-T-E-S. Athletes. So I'd love to see athletes from around the world go up against each other. So when people go up against each other, they compete with each other. Yeah, they have competitions, they compete in different sports, or they go up against each other in various events. Here we mean competitions, events. And you can say that I'd love to see the summer Olympics or the winter Olympics, or you can choose like which do you prefer. Rory, which one would you choose for?

Rory: The summer one for sure, because I like the sunshine.

Maria: The summer, okay. And can we name specific sports at the Summer Olympics?

Rory: Well, I did. Like running and diving, but you could also have, oh, I don't know, triathlons, sprints, what else do they have? Shooting, archery, maybe, I think fencing is one, and judo.

Maria: Hmm, okay. Yeah, basketball, weightlifting, cycling, or football. Football? Huh? No. Is football in the summer Olympics? Are you joking?

Rory: I think so, is it?

Maria: Oh, yeah, well, it is. So, dear listener, pick up something interesting like fencing, for example. You know, fencing is the sport where they have these kinds of swords, but they are called sabres, fencing sabres, you know, like, oh, you should Google it. Take a look at the picture, okay, fencing. Yeah, or like shooting, sailing, athletics, all right, or gymnastics, judo, karate, cycling, okay, wrestling, diving, Rory mentioned that, or triathlon, oh, triathlon is really interesting. Rory, what do they do in triathlon? It's just rough. Swimming, cycling, and running, it's crazy, triathlon.

Rory: I don't know much about triathlons, it looks crazy, though.

Maria: So, I'd like to go there in summer, or I'd like to see the summer Olympics, so it would be a good chance to travel to some place, so it would be nice, it would be I'd like to go, and I'm sure I'll have a nice time in the sun while seeing a once-in-a-lifetime event. So, the Olympics is a once-in-a-lifetime event, so it's an amazing event. It happens, well, every four years, but it's spectacular, it's exciting. So, it's a kind of once-in-a-lifetime event. If, for example, you get married, you graduate from university, so it's a once-in-a-lifetime event for you, unique. Or if you talk about, I don't know, going to a football match, or going to a hockey match, you can say that, oh, I'd like to visit the finals, or the World Cup, football World Cup, so it would be a once-in-a-lifetime event for me.

Rory: I would not like that, I think that's the most boring thing in the world.

Maria: What, the football World Cup?

Rory: Yeah, I just cannot get into that.

Maria: Yeah, but it's not about football, it's about, come on, it's about football fans, and how they socialise, you know, about the vibe. It's not just about watching the match.

Rory: The good news is, though, it takes place every four years, like the Olympics, so a lot of the things that I talk about there could probably be used for talking about the World Cup, too.

Maria: Have you ever been to a stadium? Have you ever watched a football match, like a proper football match, with famous players?

Rory: I have, yes, and it was boring.

Maria: So you didn't enjoy the energy from the crowds in the stadium, how they sing, how they support their team, and how they shout these special songs to support their team? Because the energy is amazing.

Rory: Well, it is. You could say it's electrifying, which is how I describe the atmosphere at the Olympics, or what it must be like, because I have never been.

Maria: Yeah, the atmosphere is electrifying. It's like, whoa, all this energy. When you move to a different topic, you can say: When it comes to who I'd go with, I'm not really sure. Maybe just by myself, maybe I'd go there alone, or maybe I'd go there with some close friends. And then Rory used vicariously.

Rory: That's got to be a C2 level word, surely.

Maria: It doesn't say vicariously, but it's a nice one. Yeah, it's kind of, in a vicarious way, we experience something through the activities of other people. So, like, some parents live vicariously through their children. So they see, experience certain activities through their children.

Rory: I think vicariously should be a C2 level word.

Maria: Or, for example like, some people like to live vicariously through actors. So kind of through actors' eyes.

Rory: Yeah, that means they can experience the thrill without any of the danger.

Maria: I'd like to be in the crowd, to experience the event, to experience the electric atmosphere, to experience, to enjoy the vibe, the vibes, you know, of the event. I'd like to cheer for my team, to support my team. I'd like to see people who are cheering for their nation's team. And that's pretty electrifying. Yeah, all the energy.

Rory: Or it might be, or must be electrifying. Logical deduction, because I have no idea what it's like.

Maria: It would be fun to go there. So here we always use, like, would be, could be, I could, I would, it'd be electrifying. But if I don't get to go…

Rory: I won't be too upset.

Maria: Yeah, like, a conditional sentence, it's real. So if I don't, I won't be too upset.

Rory: It's not a big deal.

Maria: Yeah, it's not a big deal. So things are recorded anyway, so you can just catch up on what actually happens on TV. So I'll catch up on what happened there. Right, dear listener. And make sure you choose a sports event that you can talk about. And we do use some sports vocabulary. So a specific sport, like fencing or athletes, yeah, competitions. What other sports vocabulary have you used?

Rory: Well, I said it's easy to catch up on what happens. But if you're in a race, then you could watch other people catch up with others. That might be quite fun. I mentioned specific sports like diving and running. Maybe triathlon would have been better or sprint. Then talking about the summer and winter Olympics or specific sports events. And of course, they're both international sports competitions, which is definitely a collocation.

Maria: Yeah, and you can say like, it's a spectator sport. Spectators are visitors, right? So if I go to watch a football match, I'm a spectator, right? Or I go to a stadium, I'd like to go to a stadium, right? To enjoy the energy of the crowd, or football fans, or just fans. And some competitions, I'd like to watch how athletes compete for a prize. Or how they go at each other, how they are awarded medals. Yeah, that would be enough. So if I were you, the listener, I'd talk about the football match or the football World Cup, or the Olympics. Yeah, the Olympics, I think, yeah, this is your idea now. Thank you very much for listening. We'll get back to you in our next episode about sports in general, okay? Bye!

Rory: Bye!

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