What is an unfair advantage in sport?
Read What is an unfair advantage in sport? and check the IELTS Reading answers. What happened to the Australian athlete Ron Clarke in the 10,000 metres at the Mexico City Olympics of 1968 is now virtually forgotten, though at the time it was headline news. Clarke was the greatest distance runner in…
Passage preview
What happened to the Australian athlete Ron Clarke in the 10,000 metres at the Mexico City Olympics of 1968 is now virtually forgotten, though at the time it was headline news. Clarke was the greatest distance runner in history; he’d broken more world records than anybody else. But in front of 55,000 horrified spectators, the event went disastrously wrong. In the third lap, one runner keeled over and, with six laps to go, two more were carried away. Yet the race was being conducted at a relatively leisurely speed: the halfway time was the slowest since the Paris Olympics of 1924. With two laps to go, Clarke was in the leading pack. ‘I’d never felt better in a race,’ he says. But suddenly he too began to struggle, and as the frontrunners moved up a gear, a gap opened up. Clarke remembers nothing of his last lap, which he ran in 90 seconds. ‘Normally I would run it in 64,’ he explains. He stumbled across the line in sixth place and collapsed. He was administered oxygen and stretchered off the track.
Answers with explanations
- 14. vii
Paragraph A describes Ron Clarke collapsing during the race, an event that went "**disastrously wrong**" and left spectators horrified. This perfectly matches the heading describing the "**surprising outcome of a race**".
- 15. vi
Paragraph B explains that Clarke had raised the issue of altitude but was ignored, and the race proved he had "**good reason to do so**". This strongly aligns with having "**Well-founded concerns**".
- 16. ix
Paragraph C highlights the ongoing "**record of success**" by East Africans, showing how runners from Kenya and Ethiopia heavily "**dominate**" distance running. This aligns with "**The runners who dominate**".
- 17. iv
Paragraph D details the "**physiological alterations**" that occur at high altitude, such as the production of more red blood cells. This matches the heading "**Changes in the body**".
- 18. ii
Paragraph E introduces the altitude tent, which lets athletes "**simulate the effects of high altitude**" easily without travelling to the mountains. This makes it a "**convenient method of acclimatization**".
- 19. viii
Paragraph F explains that the high-tech LZR swimsuit was "**initially sanctioned**" but then later **banned** by FINA after controversy, illustrating exactly "**The reversal of a decision**".
- 20. iii
Paragraph G argues that when authorities make decisions about technologies, "**rulings should not appear arbitrary**" and rules of logic must apply. This clearly points to "**The need for a rational approach**".
- 21-22: BD
21: The text confirms that at one stage, Clarke was indeed part of the leading group, matching option D (referred to here as 21/22 depending on order).
22: The text explicitly mentions that Clarke's worries were ignored or dismissed by authorities, matching option B.
- 23. spirit
WADA ruled the tents were not contrary to the **spirit** of the sport.
- 24. drag
The suits reduce **drag** and improve buoyancy.
- 25. records
Athletes feel they must constantly set new **records**.
- 26. technology
Technological improvements, or **technology**, allow for these changes in performance.