Superstition and Sport

Superstition and Sport

Pulse 2, page 85

Many sportspeople are superstitious. Did you know that tennis player, Rafa Nadal always takes two identical bottles of water with him to a tennis match? He puts them next to the court before he plays. Golfer, Tiger Woods always wears red on the last day of a golf tournament. And what about Michael Jordan? He always wore his old college basketball shorts under his team shorts for good luck, so the team shorts on top had to be very long!

Multiple Choice

For Tiger Woods, it is sometimes important to play golf

• on a particular day.

• in a particular colour.

Multiple Choice

Michael Jordan always wore

• two different pair of shorts.

• one long pair of shorts.

• Superstitions like these have been part of sport since it began. The superstitions don't make much sense, but many sports champions believe they bring them luck and help them succeed in competitions.

• When it comes to superstition, athletes aren't the only ones, of course. Many of us have our own little habits. Personally, I always have to drink my coffee from the same cup, which drives my family crazy!

Multiple Choice

In the past, athletes

• weren't superstitious.

• were as superstitious as athletes today.

Multiple Choice

The writer of the article

• isn't superstitious about anything.

• is a bit superstitious.

• According to psychologists, following the same routine makes people feel safe.

• When we do something and everything goes OK, it seems like a good idea to do it the same way next time - we don’t want to behave differently in case things go wrong!

• Another possible explanation for the athletes’ behaviour is that following the same routine helps them relax before a game. Some of them go too far, however.

Multiple Choice

People sometimes repeat the same behaviour because

• they are scared of changing it.

• they want to be like athletes.

Multiple Choice

The underlined word them refers to

• footballers.

• athletes.

There are stories of footballers who have worn the same pair of socks for many weeks because they thought they were lucky! Yuck!