阅读理解
A fresh and gentle wind on your face，soft sand under your feet and blue waters as far as the eye can see.Is there any other Olympic sport that is played in such pleasant conditions as beach volleyball?
“I’ve gone to a lot of beautiful places，and met a lot of beautiful people.That wouldn’t have happened if I had been playing another sport，” said Randy Stoklos, America’s famous beach volleyball player.
The sport began as a four－a－side game on beaches in Southern California in the 1920s.The first recorded two－man game took place there in 1930，and the first tournament was held in Los Angeles 18 years later.The winners were awarded a case of Pepsi.In the 1950s，women started playing and the sport soon spread to Europe and South America.Yet at that time，beach volleyball was more an entertainment show than a sport，with beauty contests included.The Association of Volleyball Professionals was founded in 1983 and beach volleyball developed into a fast，athletic sport.Its world－wide popularity won beach volleyball a place at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta，where 24 male teams and 16 female teams took part.At present，the U．S. and Brazil are the best in the world at beach volleyball.
The game came to China in the early 1990s and there have been national tournaments since 1994.It became an official event at the Eighth National Games in 1997.China’s You Wenhui and Wang Lu finished ninth in the women’s beach volleyball world championships in Brazil.
【解题导语】 本文是一篇说明文，主要讲述了沙滩排球的历史。
1．The passage is mainly about ________．
A．the history of beach volleyball
B．how to play beach volleyball
C．the importance of beach volleyball
D．women’s beach volleyball in China
A 解析：主旨大意题。文章前两段的目的是引出话题“沙滩排球”，而第三、四两段则主要是讲述了沙滩排球的历史。
2．According to the passage，which of the following statements is TRUE?
A．Beach volleyball was first played like other Olympic sports.
B．Beach volleyball began on beaches in Southern California.
C．Beach volleyball has always been an entertainment show rather than a sport.
D．Women started playing beach volleyball in South America in 1945.
B 解析：细节理解题。根据第三段第一句可知B项正确。其余三项均描述错误。
3．According to the passage，we can learn that ________．
A．in 1996，beach volleyball became an official event in China
B．China’s beach volleyball team is the best in the world
C．China’s beach volleyball players won the first place in Brazil
D．beach volleyball came to China in the early 1990s
D 解析：细节理解题。根据最后一段第一句可知D项正确。
