A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
增强奥运会：一个允许吃药的比赛
The Enhanced Games: An Olympics That Allows Drugs
About this story
The Enhanced Games: An Olympics That Allows Drugs. HSK 1 Chinese listening practice.
This is an HSK 1 Chinese listening episode that runs about 4 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 12 key vocabulary words such as 今天、想、知道 and walks through 4 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
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原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
Today I'll tell you a news story.
This news
is about a competition.
But this competition,
unlike any other,
is different.
Let's first talk about
what the Olympics are.
The Olympics
is the world's biggest sports competition.
Once every four years.
There's running,
there's swimming,
and many, many more.
People all over the world
watch the Olympics.
At the Olympics,
there is
a very important rule.
You may not take drugs.
What drugs?
Drugs that make you run faster,
or that make you
stronger.
If you do take them,
you'll be sent home.
The medals you won before
also have to be returned.
Why isn't it allowed?
Because everyone feels:
competition must be fair.
You're faster than others
because you practiced more,
not because you took drugs.
But there are some people
who disagree.
They thought:
"What if
"we made a competition
"where everyone is allowed to take drugs?
"Wouldn't that also be fair?
So
they created a
new competition.
This competition is named
"the Enhanced Games."
"Enhanced"
means
becoming stronger.
On May 24,
this competition
was held for the first time.
The place was
an American city called Las Vegas.
At the competition
there was running,
there was swimming,
and there was weightlifting.
A Greek swimmer
swam very fast.
He swam
faster than anyone before.
He won one million US dollars.
One million dollars —
that's a lot, a lot of money.
But
many people, hearing this news,
were not happy.
They said:
"He swam fast
"because he took drugs.
"This doesn't count.
"This is not real competition.
Some other people said:
"Why not?
"He didn't cheat anyone.
"He said openly,
"I took drugs.
"If everyone takes them,
"then it's also fair.
Both of these views
have a point.
I read this news,
and I thought of one thing.
Competition —
what is it really?
Is it about who is the strongest?
Or is it about
who practiced the most?
I think
these two
are not quite the same.
Finally I ask you:
If there were a drug
that could let you do things
faster
and better,
would you take it?
Think about it.
Okay.
That's all for today.
Talk tomorrow.
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇Today. The narrator opens 今天我给你说一个新闻 — 'today I'll tell you a news story.'
To think, to want. 他们想 — 'they thought'; the closing 你想一想 — 'think about it.'
To know. 你知道奥运会吗 — 'do you know what the Olympics are?'
To look, to watch. 我看了这个新闻 — 'I read this news'; 看谁最厉害 — 'watch who is the strongest.'
Many, a lot. The crowd response: 很多人 (many people) didn't agree; 谁练得最多 — 'who has practiced the most.'
To say. 他公开说了 — 'he said it openly,' a key idea: the new event lets doping be 'said out loud.'
Competition, a match. Beyond HSK1. The whole episode asks: what is a 比赛 really for?
Medicine, drug. Beyond HSK1. Here it means performance-enhancing drugs — banned in the Olympics, allowed in the new event.
Fair. Beyond HSK1. The episode's central word: 比赛要公平 — competition must be fair.
To strengthen, to enhance. Beyond HSK1. The episode glosses it: 变得更强 — 'becoming stronger.' Gives the new event its Chinese name 增强奥运会.
Impressive, strong. Beyond HSK1. The narrator's final framing: 看谁最厉害 — 'watch who is the most impressive.'
US dollars. Beyond HSK1. 一百万美元 — the one-million-dollar bonus that drew the world's attention.
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法X 不可以 Y
不可以 forbids an action. The episode uses it for the most important Olympic rule about doping.
你不可以吃药。
水果里，不可以用这些东西。
如果 A，就 B
如果 introduces a condition; 就 marks the consequence. The episode uses it both for the rule and for the closing question.
如果你吃了，就要被送回家。
如果有一种药，可以让你做事更快、更好，你会吃吗？
X 还是 Y? (choice in a question)
还是 offers two alternatives inside a question. The narrator's central question to the listener uses it.
是看谁最厉害？
还是看，谁练得最多？
让 + someone + verb
让 sets up a causative — letting or making someone do a thing. The episode uses it to describe what the drug does, and what the new event allows.
让你跑得更快。
让大家都可以吃药。
Proper Nouns
专有名词Free account
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