奥运离歌：“黑色闪电”的较量-经典译文-优易学

奥运离歌：“黑色闪电”的较量

来源：优易学 2011-4-2 13:29:14 【优易学：中国教育考试门户网】资料下载外语书店

　　Ben Johnson本·约翰逊

　　执迷不悟，终成噩梦

Ben Johnson本·约翰逊

　　Until he was disgraced and stripped11) of his Olympic gold medal for illegal drug use, the fastest man on earth had been Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson. Johnson struggled for years to win the respect of the media, the sports establishment, and the sprinter who was his archrival12), flamboyant13) American track superstar Carl Lewis. After winning four gold medals at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games, Lewis had been consistently beaten by Johnson, a quiet young man who resented Lewis's exalted14) status as the crown prince of track and field. At a world champioship meet in Rome in the summer of 1987, the two men were pitted against each other in the “most compelling15) 100-meter dash in history”. Johnson shattered the world record for the 100 meters, running it in 9.83 seconds. “Big Ben”, as Johnson was called, returned to Canada a conquering hero and as the odds-on16) favorite to capture the gold medal in the 100-meter sprint at the 1988 Olympic Summer Games.

　　Indeed, Johnson won the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea in spectacular17) fashion. Besting second-place finisher Carl Lewis once again, he ran the 100 meters in 9.79 seconds.

　　The world was stunned by the epic race. But Johnson indeed proved too good (or too bad) to be true. Two days later, Johnson was stripped of both his medal and the world record when he tested positive for the use of steroids. Johnson was banned from competition for two years.

　　Not feeling guilty about all this, Johnson claimed that doping is common in the sports world. “I'm not a cheat—I do what I am supposed to do to win,” he said.

　　Increasingly bitter, Johnson tested positive for doping again in 1993 and despite numerous failed appeals18), was banned from racing for life.

　　Remarks: 本·约翰逊以惊人的百米速度“成就”了奥运史上最大的一则“兴奋剂”丑闻。也许他真的像“黑色闪电”，但他 “执著”地把兴奋剂勾兑在追求光荣与梦想的过程中，最终酿成的只能是耻辱的苦酒。

　　1. fierce adj. 激烈的；强烈的

　　2. feat n. 功绩；英勇事迹

　　3. disqualify vt. 宣布(认定)……不合格

　　4. steroid [生] n. 类固醇激素(服用此类激素可加强肌力和耐力)

　　5. positive adj. [医] 阳性的(表明某种疾病、病症存在的)

　　6. dope n. 兴奋剂

　　7. outspoken adj. 坦率的，直言不讳的

　　8. ingest vt. 咽下；摄取

　　9. memo n. 备忘录

　　10. IAAF：国际田径联合会(International Association of Athletics Federations)