The reading section of the IELTS exam can benefit you largely with huge scores. So, prepare for it honestly by going through the passage on the Olympic torch reading answers, and trying to fetch perfect answers for the given questions. Let’s start.
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IELTS Reading Answers Part One
Since 776 B.C., when the Greek people held their first-ever Olympic Games, the Games were hosted every four years at Olympia city. Back then, a long journey for the Olympic torch was made before the opening ceremony of each Olympic Games. The Greek people would light a cauldron of flames on the altar, a ritual devoted to Hera, the Greek Goddess of birth and marriage.
The reintroduction of flame to the Olympics occurred at the Amsterdam 1928 Games, for which a cauldron was lit yet without a torch relay. The 1936 Berlin Summer Games held the first Olympic torch relay, which was not resumed in the Winter Olympics until 1952. However, in that year the torch was lit not in Olympia, Greece, but in Norway, which was considered the birthplace of skiing. Until the Innsbruck 1964 Winter Olympics in Austria, the Olympic flame was reignited at Olympia.
Part Two
The torch is originally an abstract concept of a designer or a group of designers. A couple of design groups hand in their drafts to the Olympic Committee in the hope that they would get the chance to create the torch. The group that wins the competition will come up with a design for a torch that has both aesthetic and practical value.
After the torch is completed, it has to succeed in going through all sorts of severe weather conditions. The appearance of the modern Olympic torch is attributed to a Disney artist John Hench, who designed the torch for the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, California. His design laid a solid foundation for all the torches in the future.
The long trip to the Olympic area is not completed by one single torch, but by thousands of them, so the torch has to be replicated many times. Approximately 10,000 to 15,000 torches are built to fit thousands of runners who take the torches through every section of the Olympic relay. Every single runner can choose to buy his or her torch as a treasurable souvenir when he or she finishes his or her part of the relay.
The first torch in the modern Olympics (the 1936 Berlin Games) was made from a slender steel rod with a circular platform at the top and a circular hole in the middle to jet flames.
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Part Three
The name of the runner was also inscribed on the platform as a token of thanks. In the earlier days, torches used everything from gunpowder to olive oil as fuels. Some torches adopted a combination of hexamine and naphthalene with a flammable fluid. However, these materials weren’t exactly the ideal fuel sources, and they could be quite hazardous sometimes.
In the 1956 Olympics, the torch in the final relay was ignited by magnesium and aluminum, but some flaming pieces fell off and seared the runner’s arms.
To promote the security rate, liquid fuels made their first appearance at the 1972 Munich Games. Since then, torches have been using fuels that are pressurized into the form of a liquid. When the fuels are burnt, they turn into gas to produce a flame. Liquid fuel becomes safer for the runner and can be stored in a light container.
The torch at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics is equipped with an aluminum base that accommodates a tiny fuel tank. As the fuel ascends through the modified handle, it is squeezed through a brass valve that has thousands of little openings. As the fuel passes through the tiny openings, it accumulates pressure. Once it makes its way through the openings, the pressure decreases and the liquid becomes gas so it can bum up.
Part Four
The torch in 1996 was fuelled by propylene, a type of substance that could give out a bright flame. However, since propylene was loaded with carbon, it would produce plenty of smoke which was detrimental to the environment. In 2000, the designers of the Sydney Olympic torch proposed a lighter and cheaper design, which was harmless to the environment.
For the fuel, they decided to go with a combination of 35 percent propane (a gas that is used for cooking and heating) and 65 percent butane (a gas that is obtained from petroleum), thus creating a powerful flame without generating much smoke.
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Part Five
Both the 1996 and 2000 torches adopted a double flame burning system, enabling the flames to stay lit even in severe weather conditions. The exterior flame bums at a slower rate and at a lower temperature. It can be perceived easily with its big orange flame, but it is unstable.
On the other hand, the interior flame bums faster and hotter, generating a small blue flame with great stability, due to the internal site offering protection from the wind. Accordingly, the interior flame would serve as a pilot light, which could relight the eternal flame if it should go out.
As for the torch of the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, the top section was made of glass in which the flame burned, to echo the theme of ‘Light, the Fire Within’ of that Olympics. This torch was of great significance for the following designs.
Questions Related to IELTS Reading Passage
Question Number One
Following are a few statements given from the passage above. You have to check the answers from the passage and write them correctly.
#1. The torch at the ______________Olympics is equipped with an aluminum base that accommodates a tiny fuel tank.
Answer: 1996 Atlanta Summer
#2. Both the ______________torches adopted a double flame burning system.
Answer: 1996 and 2000
#3. The appearance of the modem Olympic torch is attributed to a Disney artist _____________
Answer: John Hench
#4. Since ____________when the Greek people held their first-ever Olympic Games
Answer: 776 B.C.
#5. The _____________Berlin Summer Games held the first Olympic torch relay
Answer: 1936
Question Number Two
Look at the statements below and after reading them, write TRUE or FALSE in front of them.
TRUE – If the statement agrees with the information that is given above in the passage.
FALSE – If the statement disagrees with the information that is given above in the passage.
#1. Approximately 10,000 to 15,000 torches are built to fit thousands of runners
Answer: TRUE
#2. For the fuel, they decided to go with a combination of 35 percent propane and 65 percent butane.
Answer: TRUE.
#3. The reintroduction of flame to the Olympics occurred at the Amsterdam 1928 Games.
Answer: TRUE.
#4. To promote the security rate, liquid fuels made their first appearance at the 1872 Munich Games.
Answer: FALSE
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Conclusion
Therefore, IELTS exam preparation requires excellence in all the sections of the test. You can prepare well for the IELTS exam by visiting the IELTS Ninja website. Comment below in case your queries!
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