UNIT 4

Listening and Speaking

2 Listen to the interview and tick the correct statements.

I:Today we are very pleased to chat with Mr Yang Liwei, the first Chinese astronaut.Welcome to the show,Mr Yang.

MY:Thank you.

I:Mr Yang,our audience is very curious about how you succeeded in becoming China's first astronaut.It must have been a very  difficult thing to achieve.Did you always want to be an astronaut?

MY:Yes,I  dreamt of it when  I was young,but  I never thought my wish would come true.It took a long time.First,I got my college degree when I was 22,and then I worked as a fighter pilot for around 10 years.I finally became China's first astronaut when l was 38 years old.

I:Oh,so you must be a really experienced pilot.Do you think that  was one of the reasons why you were chosen for the space programme?

MY:Sure,I had 1,350 hours of flight experience,which I think really helped  me.

I:So how difficult was it to join the space programme?

MY:There was a lot of competition.Altogether,14 of us were chosen from among 1,500 pilots to train for space flights.

I:That sounds really difficult.Did you also have to be a certain size and weight?

MY:Yes,at the time,you had to be shorter than  172 centimetres in height and weigh less than 70 kilograms.You also had to be in perfect health and perfect shape.

I:So you were the  perfect choice!As we all  know,an astronaut needs to be healthy and calm in order to work in space.But you also had to study a lot,too,right?

MY:Yes,I  had to learn English,science,and astronomy.I also had to practise using space equipment,and do a lot of mental and physical training.It was very tiring,but I was so proud to have the opportunity.