Some people argue that the pressures on international sportsmen and sportswomen kill the s

Some people argue that the pressures on international sportsmen and sportswomen kill the spirit of sport: the pursuit (追求) of personal excellence. Children kick a football around for fun. When they get older and play for local school teams, they bee petitive but they still enjoy playing. The sportsman representing his country cannot afford to think about enjoying himself, he has to think only about winning. He is responsible for an entire nation’s hopes and dreams.
A good example is the football World Cup. Football is the world’s most important sport. It is even more important now that the United States is seriously taking it up. Winning the World Cup is perhaps eh greatest of international sporting success. Mention “ Argentina ” to someone and the chances are that he’ll think of football. In a sense, winning the World Cup “ put Argentina on the map ”.
Sports fans and supporters get quite irrational about the World Cup. People in England felt that their country was somehow important after they won the World Cup. Last year thousands of Scots sold their cars, and even their houses, and spent all their money traveling to Argentina, where the finals were played.
So am I arguing that international petitions kill the idea of sport? Certainly not! Do the Argentineans really believe that because eleven of their men proved the most skillful at football, their nation is better than all others? Not really. But it’s nice to know that you won, and that in one way at least your country is best.
【小题1】What is mainly discussed in this passage is     .A．why international sport is necessaryB．what international sport is like C．how international sport goes onD．what disadvantages international sport has【小题2】Those who are against international petitions think that     .A．sport should not be so popularB．sport should not be petitiveC．sport should be for personal purposeD．sport should be made easier【小题3】We can infer from the passage that the underlined word “ irrational ” means    .A．against reasonable behaviorB．having much knowledgeC．unable to understandD．eager to know【小题4】What does the writer mean by saying that winning the World Cup “ put Argentina on the map”    A．Argentina has the best football playerB．Argentina has bee world-famous for footballC．Football is very popular in ArgentinaD．Argentina has begun to pay much attention to footballB