【羽毛球史话】羽毛球的历史

　　Badminton: A great sport with a bizarre name. 　　 　　Walking down any street on a Spring or Summer"s day, even when there"s more than a whiff of a breeze on the air, you"d be best to keep your wits about you. This isn"t a warning to watch out when crossing the road, or to ①steer clear of oncoming bicycles, but if you don"t pay attention on your stroll you may discover a shuttlecock heading for your nose at lightning speed. Street games of badminton are common all over China and the sport is popular from the street right up to the top professional level. Badminton is the fastest racquet sport in the world, with shuttles reaching very high speeds. On June 3, 2005, Fu Haifeng of China ②set the unofficial record of 332 km/h.
　　在春日或夏日里，甚至是在空气里有着些许微风的时候，走在任何一条大街上，你最好都要保持清醒。这并非是在警告你在过马路时要小心或是要避开驶来的自行车，不过如果你在走路时不注意，你可能就会发现一个羽毛球正在以光速向你的鼻子飞来。在全中国，街头的打羽毛球活动司空见惯，而且这项运动从街头一直到顶级职业圈都受到了欢迎。羽毛球是世界上速度最快的拍类运动，球速非常高。2005年6月3日，中国的付海峰就创造了每小时332公里的非官方记录。
　　However, what seems like such a simple sport is enjoyed in many countries and has existed in varying forms throughout the world for centuries. In this issue of Sports we will be taking a closer look at the sport of Badminton which you may discover is not as familiar as you perhaps first thought.
　　
　　History
　　
　　Racquet sports played with a shuttlecock are most likely to have originated in Ancient Greece around 2000 years ago but there is also historical mention of the game in India, and during the Han Dynasty in China there is documentation of the game of Jianzi, which involves keeping a shuttlecock with a rubber sole from hitting the ground. People are still seen playing Jianzi regularly all over China and Asia today, and the game also exists in the West, but is more commonly known as "Hacky Sack", and is played with a small stitched cloth sack loosely filled with beads.
　　The origin of the shuttlecock is somewhat unclear, although there have been theories suggested that corks may have been used to store feathers, perhaps for storing writing quills. The object was probably used for throwing before batting, and in this way the modern shuttlecock was born.
　　In 16th Century Britain, the game had become a popular pastime especially among children. The game "Battledores and Shuttlecocks" was popular enough to have become a nuisance on the streets where paddles (battledores) were used to keep the shuttlecocks off the ground. It is said the British then took the game to Japan, China, and Siam (Thailand) as they colonized Asia.
　　The development of Badminton as we know it today
　　According to some sources, the competitive sport of Badminton was invented by British Army officers in Pune, India, in the 19th Century, with the addition of a net and rules. As the city Pune was known at that time as Poona, back then, the sport then was also called this. In the 1850"s, the soldiers brought the game back from Britain"s colonies. The game acquired its current English name in 1860 from a man named Isaac Spratt who was a toy dealer from London, in a pamphlet written by him entitled "Badminton Battledore - a new game". The name "badminton", comes from Badminton House in England, at the residence of the Duke of Beaufort where a new form of this game emerged in the 1850"s.
　　In 1883 a slim book was published entitled "Lawn Tennis, Croquet, Racquets, etc". The book contained several pages on badminton which was described as "Lawn Tennis with Shuttlecocks instead of balls". People returning from India to England began to take the game more seriously and to play it competitively, and in 1893 the British Badminton Association was founded. In March 1898, the first Open Tournament was held.
　　
　　Badminton becomes popular all over the world
　　
　　During the 1930"s, Denmark, the USA and Canada became popular followers of the sport and in 1934 the International Badminton Federation was founded, with the initial members including England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Denmark, Holland, Canada, New Zealand and France, with India joining as an affiliate member in 1936. Other countries in which the game was developing in popularity were Malaysia, Indonesia, and Australia. The first fully professional open badminton tournament was played in the Albert Hall, London, England, in 1979. In 1992 Badminton was accepted as a full medal sport of the Olympics at the 15th Olympiad in Barcelona.
　　然而，就是这么一个看似简单的运动却在许多国家中都受到了喜爱，并且在世界范围内以不同的形式发展了数百年之久。在本期的《运动网》中，我们就要来更仔细地看一看羽毛球运动，也许猛地一看你会觉得熟悉，但你可能会发现那并非如此。
　　
　　历史
　　
　　用羽毛球来玩耍的拍类运动，最有可能是大约在2000年以前发源于古希腊，但是在印度历史上对这项运动也有提及，而且在中国汉朝的时候，就有文献记载了使一只胶底羽毛球保持不落地状态的毽子运动。如今，仍然会在全中国和亚洲看到玩毽子的人们，而在西方，这项运动也是有的，不过更多地被称为“踢包”，而且是用一个小布包来玩的，里面松散地缝进了几个珠子。
　　虽然有些说法指出，木塞可能曾被用来存放羽毛，也许是被用来存放羽毛笔，但羽毛球的起源多少还是有些不明朗。在使用拍子挥打之前，这个东西可能就是被用来抛甩的，而现代羽毛球就是以这种方式诞生的。
　　在16世纪的英国，这项运动变成了一种流行的休闲活动，尤其是在孩子中间。“Battledores and Shuttlecocks”这项运动极其流行，都成了街头上一项招人厌烦的活动了――满大街都是为了使羽毛球不落地而挥舞着的拍子（羽毛球拍）。据说，英国人随后在他们殖民亚洲的时候将这项运动带到了日本、中国和暹罗（泰国）。
　　
　　当代羽毛球的发展
　　
　　根据一些出处所言，19世纪驻扎在印度普纳的一些英国军官，在添加了一张球网和一些规则后，发明了竞技性的羽毛球运动。由于普纳市当时叫做“Poona”，所以那时，这项运动也是以此来命名的。在19世纪50年代的时候，士兵们将这项运动从英国殖民地带了回去。1860年，一个叫做艾萨克・斯普拉特的伦敦玩具商写了一本名为《新运动――巴德明顿羽毛球拍》的小册子，这项运动由此获得了其现在的英文名称。“badminton（羽毛球）”这个名字取自英格兰的巴德明顿庄园――博福特公爵的寓所，而19世纪50年代，这项运动的一种新形式就是在那里出现的。
　　1883年，出版了一本名为《草地网球、槌球戏、拍球戏等》的薄册子。这本书有几页就是关于羽毛球的，将其描述成了“用羽毛球取代圆球的草地网球”。从印度返回英格兰的人开始更加认真地从事这项运动并举行比赛，在1893年的时候“英国羽毛球协会”成立了。1898年3月，举办了首次公开锦标赛。
　　
　　羽毛球风靡世界
　　
　　在20世纪30年代，丹麦、美国和加拿大对这项运动趋之若鹜；1934年，国际羽毛球联合会成立，创始成员包括英格兰、威尔士、爱尔兰、苏格兰、丹麦、荷兰、加拿大、新西兰和法国；在1936年时，印度以准会员的身份加入。而这项运动人气攀升的其它国家还有马来西亚、印度尼西亚和澳大利亚。第一次完全职业化的羽毛球公开锦标赛，是于1979年在英格兰伦敦的“艾伯特演奏厅”举行的。1992年，在第15届巴塞罗那奥运会上，羽毛球被纳为奥运会的正式比赛项目。
　　
　　Badminton Lingo
　　
　　Balk - Any deceptive movement that disconcerts an opponent before or during the service; often called a "feint".
　　Carry - An illegal tactic, also called a sling or throw, in which the shuttle is caught and held on the racquet and then slung during the execution of a stroke.
　　Drive- A fast and low shot that makes a horizontal flight over the net.
　　Drop - A shot hit softly and with finesse to fall rapidly and close to the net on the opponent"s side.
　　Fault - A violation of the playing rules, either in serving, receiving, or during play.
　　Flick - A quick wrist and forearm rotation that surprises an opponent by changing an apparently soft shot into a faster passing one; used primarily on the serve and at the net.
　　Hairpin Net Shot - Shot made from below and very close to the net with the shuttle rising, just clearing the net, and then dropping sharply down the other side. The shuttle flight approximates the shape of a hairpin.
　　Kill - Fast, downward shot that cannot be returned; a "put away".
　　Net Shot - Shot hit from the forecourt that just clears the net and drops sharply.
　　Push Shot - Gentle shot played by pushing the shuttle with little wrist motion, usually from net or midcourt to the opponent"s midcourt.
　　Rally - Exchange of shots while the shuttle is in play.
　　Smash - Hard-hit overhead shot that forces the shuttle sharply downward. Badminton"s primary attacking stroke.
　　Wood Shot - Shot resulting from the base of the shuttle being hit by the frame of the racquet. Once illegal, this shot was ruled acceptable by the International Badminton Federation in 1963.
　　
　　 羽毛球术语
　　
　　佯攻球――任何在发球之前或之中使对手措手不及的假动作，通常被称为“feint”。
　　持球――一种犯规战术，还被称为“sling”或“throw”，它是指接球后使之停留在球拍上并在随后出击时甩出。
　　平抽球――呈水平角度飞行过网的既快又低的击球。
　　吊球――在对手一侧贴近球网处迅速下落的技巧性轻击球。
　　犯规――在发球、接球或是比赛中违反比赛规则。
　　甩腕击球――手腕到前臂位置的快速挥动，将一个明显的轻击球变成更快的超身球来突袭对手；主要用在发球和拦网时。
　　发夹球――在紧贴球网处的下方击球，使之飞起，将将过网后急速下落到场地另一侧。球的飞行轨迹与发夹的形状相似。
　　扣杀――无法回击的快速下落球；亦称“put away”。
　　近网球――从前场击出后，将将过网并急速下落的击球。
　　推球――手腕力度不大而将球推出的轻柔击球，通常是在球网处或是中场处推向对手的中场。
　　回合球――在不是死球的情况下轮流击球。
　　扣球――促使球急速下落的过顶重击球。羽毛球中的首要攻击性打法。
　　扣球――球拍边框击打球底后形成的击球。以前被视作犯规的这种球，在1963年被国际羽毛球联合会认可为合理球。
　　
　　Badminton Joke:
　　Two badminton players were standing at a bar, one said to the other: "You know, tennis players are such assholes!" A man walked up to them and with a mad look on his face said: "I find that statement offensive!"
　　One of the badminton players replied: "Oh, you must be a tennis player."
　　"No," the man said: "I"m an asshole!"
　　
　　两名羽毛球选手靠着一张吧台站着，一人对另一人说道：“你知道，网球手就是蠢蛋！”一个男的朝他们走了过来，表情激动地说道：“我认为那个说法是在挑衅！”
　　羽毛球选手中的一人回复道：“噢，你肯定是一位网球手了。”
　　“不，”这个男的说：“我是一个蠢蛋！”
　　
　　whiff /(h)wif/ n.一阵(风、气味等)
　　breeze /br1z/ n.微风
　　shuttlecock /`H7tlk4k/ n.羽毛球
　　badminton /`b2dmint9n/ n.羽毛球
　　racquet /`r2kit/ n.球拍
　　sole /s9ul/ n.脚底
　　stitch /stitH/ v.缝；缝合
　　sack /s2k/ n.麻布袋
　　bead /b1d/ n.珠子
　　cork /k5k/ n.软木塞
　　quill /kwil/ n.羽茎
　　bat /b2t/ v.用球棒击球
　　nuisance /`n( sns/ n.讨厌的人或东西
　　paddle /`p2dl/ n.桨状物
　　pamphlet /`p2mflit/ n.小册子
　　affiliate member 准会员
　　lingo /`liMG9u/ n.行话
　　disconcert /,disk9n`s8t/ vt.使为难；使慌乱
　　finesse /fi`nes/ n.精密技巧；策略
　　hairpin /`h^pin/ n.发夹
　　approximate /9`pr4ksimeit/ v.近似；接近
　　① steer clear of 避开；绕开
　　② set the record 创造记录