高考英语真题阅读 5

The Biggest Stadiums in the World

People have been pouring into stadiums since the days of ancient Greece. In around 80 A.D., the Romans built the Colosseum, which remains the world’s best known stadium and continues to inform contemporary design. Rome’s Colosseum was 157 feet tall and had 80 entrances, seating 50,000 people. However, that was small fry compared with the city’s Circus Maximus, which accommodated around 250,000 people.

These days, safety regulations—not to mention the modern sports fan’s desire for a good view and comfortable seat—tend to keep stadium capacities(容量) slightly lower. Even soccer fans tend to have a seat each; gone are the days of thousands standing to watch the match.

For the biggest stadiums in the world, we have used data supplied by the World Atlas list so far, which ranks them by their stated permanent capacity, as well as updated information from official stadium websites.

All these stadiums are still functional, still open and still hosting the biggest events in world sport.

·Rungrado 1st of May Stadium, Pyongyang D.P.R. Korea. Capacity: 150,000. Opened: May 1,1989.

·Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan, U. S. Capacity: 107,601. Opened: October 1, 1927.

·Beaver Stadium, State College, Pennsylvania, U.S. Capacity: 106, 572. Opened: September 17, 1960.

·Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio, U. S. Capacity: 104, 944. Opened: October 7, 1922.

·Kyle Field, College Station, Texas, U. S. Capacity: 102, 512. Opened: September 24, 1927.

1.How many people could the Circus Maximus hold?

A 104,944.

B 107,601.

C About 150,000.

D About 250,000.

解析：选D。D 细节理解题。根据第一段最后一句“However, that was small fry compared with the city’s Circus Maximus, which accommodated around 250,000 people.” (然而，与这座城市容纳了25万人的大竞技场相比，这只是小巫见大巫。)可知，Circus Maximus的可以容纳25万人。故选D。

2.Of the following stadiums, which is the oldest?

A Michigan Stadium.

B Beaver Stadium.

C Ohio Stadium.

D Ohio Stadium.

解析：选C。C 细节理解题。根据文章最后部分中的“Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio, U.S. Capacity: 104, 944. Opened October 7, 1922. (美国俄亥俄州哥伦布市俄亥俄体育场，容纳人数：104,944人。1922年10月7日开业。)”及其他四个著名竞技场的开放时间介绍可知，Ohio Stadium开放时间最早在1922年，属于年代最久远的。故选C。

3.What do the listed stadiums have in common?

A They host big games.

B They have become tourist attractions.

C They were built by Americans.

D They are favored by architects.

解析：选A。A 细节理解题。根据文中“All these stadiums are still functional, still open and still hosting the biggest events in world sport. (所有这些体育场馆仍在使用，仍在开放，仍在举办世界上最大的体育赛事)”可知，这些体育馆都还在承办大型的体育赛事。故选A。