去年十月,肯亞長跑運動員埃利烏德·基普喬格用1小時59分40秒跑完了馬拉松全程。許多人都曾為打破世界紀錄而努力,人類為什麼如此執著於突破極限呢? 讓我們來看看上海外國語大學附屬浦東外國語學校的兩位小讀者的見解吧!
LAST OCTOBER, Eliud Kipchoge, who was already the world’s fastest marathoner, ran 42.195 kilometers in 1 hour 59 minutes and 40 seconds. By doing so, he became the first human being to finish a marathon within two hours. Unfortunately, since Kipchoge used some technical support, the score wasn’t officially recognized (認可).
However, Kipchoge’s achievement kept me thinking: What encourages athletes to break their limits? Do human beings have limits?
As an old saying goes, 「Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered (掌握), you will never grow.」 In 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first man to travel in space. Eight years later, Neil Armstrong became the first man to land on the Moon. Human beings, in fact, have never stopped breaking their limits. Kipchoge’s story reminds me of my experience of practicing swimming. After years of hard work, I finally broke my personal best and came out first in school swimming examinations.
Just as Kipchoge has said, 「No one is limited.」 The experience of pushing ourselves to the limit of our abilities will be valuable. That’s probably what keeps human beings breaking their limits. The great efforts required to break the limits will strengthen our will, helping us to become stronger people. We should all try challenging (挑戰) ourselves to realize our full potential (潛質).
李欣琪
上海外國語大學附屬浦東外國語學校