English Essay by Sunil Kapoor, Niigata City ALT
66 What a Weekend! (part one) ＲＥＡＤＩＮＧ (slow)(fast)
What a Weekend! (Part One)
Have you ever
heard of
“International Youth Soccer in Niigata”?
It’s the name of a youth soccer tournament held in Niigata every
summer. This year’s tournament was the
seventeenth edition. It was held
during the three-day holiday weekend, Saturday July 13th to Monday
July 15th.
I love soccer. So every July my family and I go to watch
soccer games at this tournament. The
teams are all made of young players.
The ages of the players are 16 and 17 years old. The word used in soccer for these tournaments
is Under 17, or U-17.
Every year, four teams join this
tournament. One of the teams is a
Niigata Select U-17 team. This team is
made up of the best 16 and 17-year-old players in Niigata prefecture.
Do you know
Gotoku Sakai? He’s a professional soccer
player from Sanjo, here in Niigata. He played
for Albirex a few years ago. But he now
plays in one of the best soccer leagues in the world, the Bundesliga,
the top league in Germany. He
plays on the Japan national team too, and last year he played in the
London Olympics. He’s also interesting
because his mother is German, and he was born in New York.
I watched Gotoku
play for the Niigata Select U-17 team five years ago in the Niigata tournament. He played very well then too, and I knew he
had a bright future. Gotoku has a
younger brother, Goson. Goson
played very well for the Niigata Select U-17 team in this year’s tournament,
just like his brother five years ago.
I always enjoy watching the stars of tomorrow play at this tournament.
Another team that
plays is the Japan National U-17 team. These
players are the best players in Japan for their age group. Two other national teams come from far
away for this tournament, too. Last
year, Mexico and Hungary’s national U-17 teams came. But this year, for the first time ever, Croatia
and the USA’s national U-17 teams came to Niigata to play in the tournament. (More to come)
【 注 】
Have you ever heard of（〜について今まで聞いたことがありますか）
International Youth Soccer（国際ユースサッカー）
a youth soccer tournament held in Niigata
（新潟で開かれるユースサッカー大会）
the seventeenth edition（第17回）
are all made of（すべて〜で構成されている）
join（参加する），in Niigata
prefecture（新潟県では）
the best soccer leagues（最も素晴らしいサッカーリーグ）
the Bundesliga（ブンデスリーガ＜ドイツのサッカーリーグ＞）
in Germany（ドイツで），
the Japan
national team
was born（生まれた），Gotoku（酒井高徳＜ごうとく＞），
a bright future（明るい未来），Goson（酒井高聖＜ごうそん＞）
Select(選抜)，just like（ちょうど〜のように）
come from far away（遠くから来る）
Mexico and Hungary’s national U-17 teams
（メキシコとハンガリーの代表U-17のチーム）
Croatia（クロアチア）
【Questions and Answers】
Please
answer the questions
in a complete sentence and in English.
Q1. When was this year’s youth soccer tournament
held?
Q2. Does Sunil go with his family to watch the
soccer games?
Q3. How old are the soccer players?
Q4. Who is Gotoku Sakai?
Q5. Which
four U-17 teams played in this year’s tournament?
【 Answers 】
Q1. When was this year’s youth soccer tournament
held?
A1. It was held Saturday July 13th to
Monday July 15th.
Q2. Does Sunil go with his family to watch the
soccer games?
A2.
Yes, he does.
Q3. How old are the soccer players?
A3.
They are 16 and 17 years old.
Q4. Who is Gotoku Sakai?
A4.
He’s a professional soccer player from Sanjo.
Q5.
Which four U-17 teams played in this year’s tournament?
A5.
Niigata (Select), Japan, Croatia and the USA did.
