11.There is a saying in France that states:"The government could fall,the Louvre could be broken into or aliens could land on Earth,but if any of these things happened during the Tour de France,no one would notice."The Tour de France is the most famous cycling race in the world.The race,which is held in July every year,consists of twenty one-day stages,plus several rest days.The course follows a clockwise route around France,and often neighboring countries,including Luxembourg,Belgium,and Italy.The winner is the rider who completes all twenty stages of the race in the shortest overall time.
The Tour de France first started on July 1,1903,when sixty cyclists left from in front of The Alarm Clock Café,just outside of Paris,and rode 467kilometers to Lyon.The first race consisted of six legs,each of which was about 400kilometers long.At that time there were no rest days---the winner was the rider who finished the race in the shortest total time.The winner of the first Tour de France,Maurice Garin,the most popular cyclist in France at that time,received 2,000francs (about﹩350).It took him 94hours and 33minutes to ride all 2,428kilometers of the race,three hours faster than the runner-up.Over the weeks during which the race was run,the idea of the Tour de France slowly caught on with the people of France.The race has been held every year since that time,except during the years of World Wars I and II.
The Tour de France has developed several special honors for which racers compete.The highest honor is the"yellow jersey."Henri Desgranges,the founder of the race,introduced the yellow jersey in 1919to show the leading racer each day of the Tour de France.Each day,the officials who keep track of all of the riders'times compare each riders'total time up to that point.The racer with the lowest overall time wears the yellow jersey during the following day's race.Other honors include the"green jersey,"which is given to the best sprinter,and the"polka dot jersey,"a white jersey with red dots,for the best rider in the mountains along the route.
Over the years of the race,the competitors have gained a reputation for good sportsmanship.For example,if a lead rider falls off his bike,it is common for the following riders to slow down to allow the fallen rider to catch up.Some watchers are surprised by this,but as German rider Jan Ullrich,who came in runner-up in 2002after waiting for winner Lance Armstrong,says,"Of course I would wait.If I would have won this race by taking advantage of someone's bad luck,then the race was not worth winning."
41.What is the passage mainly about?C
A.famous Tour de France winners
B.sportsmanship in the Tour de France
C.the rules and history of the Tour de France
D.techniques of the Tour de France cyclists
42.Who was Henri Desgranges?D
A.a famous cyclist
B.a café owner
C.the man who won the first Tour de France
D.the man who had the idea for the Tour de France
43.Today,the Tour de France is different from the original race because cyclists…C
A.ride in a clockwise direction.B.receive money as a prize
C.have days to rest during the race.D.have to ride for over 2,000kilometers.
44.Who wears the yellow jersey?B
A.the fastest cyclist of the previous day
B.the fastest overall cyclist up to that time
C.the fastest cyclist over short distances
D.the winner from the year before.