Story of the Fosbury Flop – IELTS General Reading Answers

The General Training Reading module covers things that one could come across in daily life, such as notices, advertising, and documents linked to the workplace. In order to score well in this part, students must be proficient readers who can also apply their knowledge to real-world situations, as demonstrated in passages like ‘Story of the Fosbury Flop’ which is a part of IELTS General Reading.

The IELTS General passage ‘Story of the Fosbury Flop’ is great for practice because it imitate the kinds of questions given in the IELTS Reading exam.

The Passage ‘Story of the Fosbury Flop’ is a part of Cambridge 17 Test 3. It consists of 13 questions designed to enhance your reading skills and boost your overall band score.

The question types found in these passages are:

• Matching Information (Q. 1-5)
• Multiple-Choice Question (Q. 6-9)
• Summary Completion (Q. 10- 13)

Reading Passage 

The story of the Fosbury Flop

A On October 20, 1968 a 21 year old university student from the USA called Dick Fosbury completely transformed the sport of high jumping with a gold medal and Olympic record jump of 2.24 mts at the Mexico City games. Forbury accomplished this fabulous feat by sailing over crossbar head first and backward. As colorfully described that day by the Los Angeles Times, “Fosbury goes over the bar like a guy being pushed out of a 30 storey window.’

B At first when asked about how this unorthodox manoeuvre originated, Fosbury would joke with sportswriters, informing some that because of this university background in physics and engineering he had initially designed the Flop on paper and telling others that he had accidentally discovered this technique when he once tripped and fell backward on his take off. However in later interviews Fosbury revealed that the technique actually unfolded over many years and involved countless trials and errors. “It was simply a natural technique that evolved.” He said, “I never thought about how to change it and I am sure my coach was going crazy because it kept evolving. I didn’t know anyone else in the world would be able to use it.”

C Fosbury explained that when he first learned to high jump at the age of 10 or 11, he tried jumping with the scissors style. He said, “ I used that style until I went into high school where my coach explained that I was never going to get anywhere with that technique. He started me with the belly roll technique. However I was really lousy with that style. I expressed my frustration to coach and he said that if I really wanted I could still use the scissors.”

So in his next competition, Fosbury went back to the scissors style. He explained, “As the bar was raised each time, I began to lift my hips up and my shoulders went back in reaction to that. At the end of the competition I had improved my best by 15 cm to 1 m 78 and even placed third. The next two years in high school with my curved approach I began to lead with my shoulder and eventually was going over head first like today’s Floppers.”

D In this way, the Flop evolved, not from design, but from a trial and error process which combined repeated effort with the biomechanics of Fosbury’s gangling 1 m 93 physique. Sports Illustrated writer Richard Hoffer wrote, ”It was on-site engineering his body and mind working together making reflexive adjustment with only one goal getting over the bar. Hoffer explained that although Fosbury’s arms and legs seemed to be all over the place, those movements that served to get him a centimeter higher were retained, while the others were gradually eliminated as the technique evolved.

E What did Fosbury think of the seeming awkwardness of his Flop? “I believe that the Flop was a natural style,” he said, “And I was just the first to find it. I can say that because the Canadian jumper Debbie Brill was a few years younger than I was and also developed the same technique only a few years after me and without ever having seen me.”

A striking coincidence? Yes indeed. But perhaps not as striking as the fact that a high school student called Bruce Quande was photographed on May 24, 1963 flopping backward over the crossbar. This was the same month that Fosbury recalls having flopped for the first time in the competition when he was at high school.

F But completing the Flop successfully was only half the battle the return to earth still had to be negotiated. Few would even consider such an experiment knowing they had have to land on their necks. When Fosbury was jumping in high school he had to land in pits which were filled with wood chips, sawdust or sand. On one occasion Fosbury hit his head on the wooden border or the pit. Another time he landed totally out of the pit, flat on his back knocking the wind out of him. The next year Fosbury’s high school became the first in the region to install foam rubber in its high jump pit thereby cushioning the jumper’s fall and encouraging the use of the potentially dangerous Flop. The Fosbury Flop and cushioned landing areas thus appear to have co-evolved.

G Fosbury explains how he came to name the Flop. “I am very proud that I received the naming rights. But the term by which the style is known did not appear overnight. To tell the truth, the first time was that I was interviewed and asked ‘What do you call this?’ I used my engineering analytical side and I referred to it as a back lay out.’ It was not interesting and the journalist didn’t even write it down. I noted this. The next time that I was interviewed, that’s when I said: ‘Well at home in my town they call it the Fosbury Flop’ – and everyone wrote it down. It was the first time to call it that but it came from a caption on a newspaper photo that said: “Fosbury flops over bar.’ The context was that our town was on a river, very popular for fishing an hour from the Pacific Ocean. And when you land a fish on the bank it’s flopping. That’s the action and so it’s a good description by a journalist and I remembered it.”

Questions 1-5

1. A suggestion that Fosbury should change his way of jumping.
2. A reference to an opportunity offered to Fosbury that made him feel honored.
3. A reference to the fact that Fosbury was a very influential high jumper.
4. Conflicting explanations given by Fosbury for the way the idea for the Fosbury Flop began.
5. A reference to a time when Fosbury was dissatisfied with his athletic performance.

Questions 6-9

6 When interviewed about his development of the Fosbury Flop, Dick Fosbury

A always insisted that he had carefully designed it on scientific principles
B said he wanted to develop a technique by an injury he suffered while making a jump
C claimed it was inspired by an injury he suffered while making a jump
D stated that it had been done gradually without any overall pain

7 Fosbury achieved a sudden improvement in the height he could jump when he

A started to adapt the scissors technique
B became much more determined to win competitions
C decided to abandon the scissors technique
D found a new way of using the belly roll style

8. When describing the way that Fosbury’s jump evolved, Richard Hoffer stressed that

A Fosbury’s height slowed down his progress
B the process was more controlled that it appeared
C Forbury was not really aware of his own technique
D the process included specialist input from engineers

9. Fosbury defended his idea that his style of jumping was natural by pointing out that

A it was achievable by younger jumpers
B it was copied successfully by other athletes
C it was achievable without any special training
D it was independently discovered by other athletes

Questions 10-13

How the Fosbury Flop got its name

When first interviewed, Fosbury called his jumping style a 10 ………………… but he realised that this had not made an impression on the 11 ………………. .In his next interview, he used a name taken from the description given to a newspaper photo – and this was the name that everyone noted. He says the name was appropriate because his town is near a 12 ………………….. and a 13 …………… does a similar type of flopping movement when brought to land.

Answers for Story of the Fosbury Flop with Location and Explanations

1 Answer: C
Question type: Matching information
Answer Location: Section C, Line 3
Answer Explanation: Take a look at this line , “… I used that style until I went into high school where my coach explained that I was never going to get anywhere with that technique….” Fosbury’s coach suggesting he change his way of jumping is mentioned in this line. Hence, the answer is C.

2 Answer: G
Question type: Matching information
Answer Location: Section G, Lines 1-2
Answer Explanation: In this line of Section G it is mentioned that, “… “I am very proud that I received the naming rights. But the term by which the style is known did not appear overnight…”Fosbury’s feeling of honor regarding the naming rights of the Fosbury Flop is discussed here. Hence, the answer is ‘G’.

3 Answer: A
Question type: Matching information
Answer Location: Section A, Lines 4-5
Answer Explanation: It is mentioned in the line 4-5 of Section A that, “…As colorfully described that day by the Los Angeles Times, “Fosbury goes over the bar like a guy being pushed out of a 30 storey window…” Fosbury’s influence as a high jumper, transforming the sport, is highlighted here. Hence, the answer is ‘A’.

4 Answer: B
Question type: Matching information
Answer Location: Section B, Lines 6-8
Answer Explanation: Have a look at this line, “ …involved countless trials and errors. “It was simply a natural technique that evolved…”Conflicting explanations Fosbury initially joked about the technique’s origin but later revealed that it evolved over time through trial and error. Hence, the answer is ‘B’.

5 Answer: C
Question type: Matching information
Answer Location: Section C, Lines 4-5
Answer Explanation: Take a look at this line, “…However I was really lousy with that style. I expressed my frustration to coach and he said that if I really wanted I could still use the scissors…” Fosbury’s dissatisfaction with his athletic performance is discussed here. Hence, the answer is ‘C’.

6 Answer: D
Question type: MCQ
Answer Location: Section B, Lines 6-7
Answer Explanation: In this line of Section B it is stated that, “…over many years and involved countless trials and errors. “It was simply a natural technique that evolved…” Fosbury mentioned that the technique evolved gradually without overall pain. Hence, the answer is ‘D’.

7 Answer: A
Question type: MCQ
Answer Location: Section C, Lines 1-2
Answer Explanation: In this line of Section C it was mentioned that, “…Fosbury explained that when he first learned to high jump at the age of 10 or 11, he tried jumping with the scissors style…” This is evident from his description of how his performance improved dramatically when he returned to the scissors style of jumping. Hence, the answer is ‘C’.

8 Answer: B
Question type: MCQ
Answer Location: Section D, Lines 5-7
Answer Explanation: Take a look at these lines, “…Hoffer explained that although Fosbury’s arms and legs seemed to be all over the place, those movements that served to get him a centimeter higher were retained, while the others were gradually eliminated as the technique evolved…”Richard Hofferdescribes how Fosbury’s movements were purposeful, with adjustments made to improve his jumping height. Hence, the answer is ‘B’.

9 Answer: D
Question type: MCQ
Answer Location: Section E, Lines 3-4
Answer Explanation: It was mentioned in these lines that, “… I can say that because the Canadian jumper Debbie Brill was a few years younger than I was and also developed the same technique only a few years after me and without ever having seen me…”Fosbury defended his idea by pointing out that it was independently discovered by other athletes here. Hence the answer is ‘D’.

10 Answer: Back layout
Question type: Summary completion
Answer Location: Section G, Lines 3-4
Answer Explanation: Take a look at these lines from Section G, “…my engineering analytical side and I referred to it as a back layout.’ It was not interesting and the journalist ….”He mentions black layout in an early interview before settling on the name “Fosbury Flop.” Hence, the answer is ‘Back layout’.

11 Answer: Journalist
Question type: Summary completion
Answer Location: Section G, Lines 4-6
Answer Explanation: It was mentioned here that, “…It was not interesting and the journalist didn’t even write it down. I noted this. The next time that I was interviewed, that’s when I said: ‘Well at home in my town they call it the Fosbury Flop’…” Fosbury realized that his initial term didn’t make an impression on the journalist. This led him to come up with a different name for his jumping style. Hence, the answer is ‘Journalist’.

12 Answer: River
Question type: Summary completion
Answer Location: Section G, Lines 7-9
Answer Explanation: It was mentioned in Section G that, “…The context was that our town was on a river, very popular for fishing an hour from the Pacific Ocean…” Fosbury chose the name “Fosbury Flop” because his town was near a river in.He explains how the term “flop” was inspired by the motion of fish when brought to land. Hence, the answer is ‘River’.

13 Answer: Fish
Question type: Summary completion
Answer Location: Section G, Lines 9-10
Answer Explanation: Take a look at these lines, “…And when you land a fish on the bank it’s flopping. That’s the action and so it’s a good description by a journalist and I remembered it…”The movement of a fish when brought to land was similar to the flopping movement in Fosbury’s jump, justifying the name. This explains the rationale behind the term “flop” in the name “Fosbury Flop.”Hence, the answer is ‘Fish’.

Tips to Solve the Passage Question Types in the Story of the Fosbury Flop Reading Answers 

Since now you know the answers to Story of the Fosbury Flop Reading Answers, let us check out some quick tips to answer the passage question types in the Reading Answers of Story of the Fosbury Flop.

Matching Information: 

Matching information is a type of IELTS reading question that requires you to match a list of features to the correct people, places, or things in a passage.

To answer matching information questions, you can use the following strategies:

• Before starting, ensure clarity on what needs to be matched, such as headings to paragraphs or statements to sections.
• Quickly go through the passage to grasp its content and layout, aiding in locating relevant information.
• Identify keywords or key phrases in both the question and passage, as they often lead to the correct answer.
• Mark information in the passage that matches the question, facilitating easy reference during answering.
• Be mindful of synonyms and paraphrases, as they may replace exact words from the question within the passage.

Multiple-Choice Questions:

You will be given a reading passage followed by several questions based on the information in the paragraph in multiple-choice questions. Your task is to understand the question and compare it to the paragraph in order to select the best solution from the available possibilities.

• Before reading the passage, read the question and select the keywords. Check the keyword possibilities if the question statement is short on information.
• Then, using the keywords, read the passage to find the relevant information.
• To select the correct option, carefully read the relevant words and match them with each option.
• You will find several options with keywords that do not correspond to the information.
• Try opting for the elimination method mostly.
• Find the best option by matching the meaning rather than just the keywords.

Summary Completion: 

Summary Completion is a type of IELTS reading question that requires you to fill in a gap in a paragraph with a word or phrase from the passage. Some tips for answering the questions and obtaining a high band in the IELTS examination are given below:

• Try predicting the answers even before you glance at the given options.This will assist you find the correct answer.
• Find out whether the gap has to be filled with an adverb, adjective, noun or verb. You would have selected the wrong answer if your sentence is grammatically wrong.
• Find synonyms as well as paraphrases in the text instead of words that seem directly matching.
• Don’t spend a lot of time looking for an answer to just one question. If you are unable to find it, move on to the next. Focus more on the easy answers.
  Normally, the answers would come in the similar order as that of the questions.
• If you have received a list of words, try to think about those that cannot be correct as per their grammar or meaning. Then, you can remove these words.

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