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Marathon pacers (马拉松配速员), sometimes also called “rabbits”, are usually great runners. There are usually between 10 and 15 pacers in a marathon. Each of them leads a different group. They run at a set race in their projected (预定的) time. They usually bold a sign or a balloon with the time on it to help the runners finish the race.

There are many reasons to run with a pacer. First of all, they can help you run at the right pace. If you go out too fast in the first half of the race, you can run out of energy quickly and slow down in the second half. Similarly, if you set out to run a slower first half and a faster second half. It can be hard to follow the pace in the end because you’re very time them. With a pacer, you don’t have to think too hard about your pace. You just need to keep up with your pacer.

Marathon pacers do more than that. They can encourage you to keep going when you go through the hardest part of the race. In fact, many marathon runners bring out the best in them by following a pacer.

It’s not easy to become a marathon pacer, you must have experience in running marathons and be able to pace a race correctly.

1.1. How many marathon pacers are there possibly in a marathon?

A 8

B 12

C 16

D 20

解析：选B。B 细节理解题。题目问一场马拉松可能有多少名配速员。原文明确提到 “There are usually between 10 and 15 pacers in a marathon”（一场马拉松通常有 10 到 15 名配速员），选项中只有 12 在 10-15 这个区间内，A（8）、C（16）、D（20）均超出或低于该范围，故答案为 B。

2.2． What can you see on a marathon pacer’s sign or a balloon?

A The name.

B The speed.

C The time.

D The number of pacers.

解析：选C。C 细节理解题。题目询问在配速员的标牌或气球上能看到什么。原文指出 “They usually hold a sign or a balloon with the time on it”（他们通常举着带有时间的标牌或气球），直接表明上面的内容是时间，A（名字）、B（速度）、D（配速员数量）均未在原文提及，因此答案为 C。

3.3． In the third paragraph, what does the underlined word “them” refer to?

A Runners.

B Pacers.

C Coaches.

D Rabbits.

解析：选A。A 词义猜测题。题目要求判断第三段划线词 “them” 指代什么。第三段句子为 “In fact, many marathon runners bring out the best in them by following a pacer”（事实上，许多马拉松参赛者通过跟随配速员发挥出了自己的最佳水平），结合语境，“bring out the best in sb” 表示 “使某人发挥出最佳水平”，此处 “sb” 应指前面提到的 “many marathon runners”（许多马拉松参赛者），即 “runners”，B（配速员）、C（教练，原文未提及）、D（兔子，是配速员的别称，并非此处指代对象）均不符合，故答案为 A。

4.4． Running with a pacer in a marathon has the following advantages EXCEPT ________.

A You must get the first prize.

B You can run at the right pace.

C You don’t have to think too hard about your pace.

D You can keep going when you go through the hardest part of the race.

解析：选A。A 细节理解题。题目问跟着配速员跑的好处不包括哪一项。原文提到的好处有：“help you run at the right pace”（帮你保持合适配速，对应 B 选项）、“don’t have to think too hard about your pace”（不用费太多心思关注配速，对应 C 选项）、“encourage you to keep going when you go through the hardest part of the race”（在比赛艰难阶段鼓励你坚持，对应 D 选项）。而 A 选项 “你一定能得第一名” 在原文中从未提及，且跟着配速员跑无法保证得第一名，故答案为 A。

5.5. What’s the main idea of the passage?

A Tell us the looks of marathon pacers.

B Tell us the future of marathon pacers.

C Tell us the hobbies of marathon pacers.

D Tell us the importance of marathon pacers.

解析：选D。D 主旨大意题。题目问文章主旨。A 选项 “告诉我们配速员的外貌”，原文未描述配速员外貌；B 选项 “告诉我们配速员的未来”，原文未提及未来相关内容；C 选项 “告诉我们配速员的爱好”，原文也未涉及爱好；文章主要介绍了配速员的数量、作用（帮助保持配速、鼓励坚持等，体现其重要性）及成为配速员的条件，核心是阐述配速员的重要性，故修正后的 D 选项为正确答案。