WRITTEN COMPREHENSION WORKSHEET#3

Les Chartreux - Class of Mr. ROBIN © R. Mouisset

WRITTEN COMPREHENSION WORKSHEET#3

College athletics in the US and in Europe: Worlds apart

On European campuses, sport is viewed mainly as a leisure activity, with only a few instances of elite university events (including The Boat Race, the famous rowing contest that has opposed Oxford and Cambridge since 1829).

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In European countries, those who strive after a professional career or want to compete at a high level join local clubs. These academies, which are affiliated to government-funded organizations, recruit young athletes and develop them, but they are usually separated from the higher education system. As a consequence, professional athletes who get the chance to sign contracts with an elite football or rugby club seldom have college degrees. Furthermore, a lot of European athletes are recruited at a very young age, which raises ethical questions.

a) In the U.S., being both an athlete and a university graduate is absolutely not contradictory. Indeed, colleges, not clubs, feed the professional system. Although not all professional sportsmen and sportswomen have a college education (many are signed after high school, while others drop out after one year in order to join professional franchises), it is estimated that around 20% of NBA players and as many as 50% of NFL players have a college degree. Enough to debunk the stereotype of dumb sportsmen…!

 If you study in the U.S. and want to become a professional athlete, or are simply good enough to compete at a high level, you can participate in interstate tournaments sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA, the equivalent of the NBA, NFL, NHL… at college level). Top NCAA events are almost as popular and widely followed as professional games, if not more! In fact, most professional teams are franchises with limited local rooting: some states have no NFL or NBA franchise, and if they have one, it may be relocated somewhere else if the owner sees fit to do it (for instance, the Lakers played in Minneapolis until they moved to LA in 1960). Thus, many Americans feel more attached to their local college team, even if they did not attend it when they were younger.

Some figures are astounding compared to Europe. For example, eight U.S. campus stadiums can host more than 100,000 spectators for football games (Michigan, Ohio, Alabama, etc.) and in 2015, almost 30 million U.S. TV viewers watched the "March Madness" basketball finals that pitted Duke against Wisconsin – more than the NBA finals!

Many players that make it to the professional level keep supporting the college team they used to play for. For example, basketball superstar Michael Jordan is still a faithful supporter of his former college, and he is said to have worn his North Carolina shorts underneath his Chicago Bulls outfit throughout his career, for good luck and to pay tribute to his alma mater.

c) Not all U.S. colleges have highly competitive teams - some, like Harvard and Yale, do not give priority to their sport results, and compete in minor divisions. For less prestigious state universities, on the other hand, the publicity of elite NCAA events is essential in order to get national recognition and visibility.

Even if you just want to practice sports at a recreational level, you will have plenty of possibilities in the varsity system. There are weekly trainings and frequent games against other universities, and you can enjoy state-of-the-art facilities like Olympic swimming pools, climbing walls and a multitude of tennis courts and gyms.

d)  However, the success of US college athletics comes at a price. With yearly tuition fees ranging from about $10,000 to more than $60,000, student athletes must often rely on scholarships and loans. One of the reasons why these tuition fees are so high is because universities invest millions of dollars in large, brand new facilities, stadiums and arenas so as to promote their campuses, while only a few colleges produce substantial revenue from sport programs. A lot of analysts criticize this spending spree that makes many colleges unaffordable and has turned campuses into luxurious resorts.  

f) There are other debates and controversies. For example, some colleges are blamed for laying too much emphasis on sports, at the expense of academic fields like art and sciences. They are also criticized for granting huge scholarships to promising athletes, instead of helping deserving students from underprivileged areas. The question of paying student athletes is also a burning issue and, finally, student athletes are regularly accused of enjoying a privileged status and committing fraud.

1. Vocabulary

a) Find the translations or synonyms of these words in paragraphs 1 to 5:

• entertainment syn= leisure                                                                        
• l'aviron =   rowing                                    
• ambitionner =        aim to                                                                         
• rarely syn=                                                                                 
• a diploma syn=                                                                
• un diplômé =        university graduate                                                                        
• alimenter =     feed                                                                         
• to quit your studies syn=                                                                       
• le propriétaire =    owner                              
• juger bon de… = to attend
• accueillir =     host                                                                                            
• opposer X à Y = against

b) Find the translations and synonyms of these words in paragraphs 6 to 10:

• ex/ancien(ne) =                                                                                        
• rendre hommage = to pay tribute                                                                        
• dernier cri =                                                                
• equipment syn=     facilities                                                                 
• les frais de scolarité =        tuition fees                                                                
• une bourse =   scolarships                                                                                            
• un prêt bancaire =      loan                                                                         
• les recettes (fiscales) =                                                                        
• too expensive syn=                                                                                       
• to insist on syn=        
• méritant =     deserving                                                                                            
• défavorisé = disadvantaged

c) Explain these words and expressions from the whole text in your own words:

• to debunk (par. 3) = to debunk mean that you’re saying the truth/reality on sthing
• an alma mater (par. 6) =
• a spending spree (par. 9) = huge use of money
• a burning issue (par. 10) = a question that make people react.

2. Global comprehension questions: true or false? Justify by quoting from the text.

a) More professional athletes have college degrees in the US than in Europe.                 ☐ T    ☐ F 

 T : “a)”

b) In the US, college sport is not as popular as professional sport.                         ☐ T    ☐ F 

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