It’s said that professional footballers in the USA can make millions of dollars throughout their careers. Yet statistics show that many eventually run out of money once their playing days are over. The University of Pennsylvania wants to change that and help teach American footballers how to rebuild their lives when their sports careers come to an end.
“All their life they have focused on football. Deciding what comes next can be difficult.” Says professor Morvarid Taheripour, the head of the athletes’ project. “Some people say athletes die two deaths. You kind of die when you stop playing and you die in real life. So they’ve got to come back to life and figure out ‘How am I going to make a living at 25 for maybe another 40 years?”
For Taheripour, the partnership with professional athletes is a dream to come true. “It was taking everything I love about teaching and yet being able to influence people who are accomplished and hard-working, yet very modest.”
But even with help, figuring out the next chapter isn’t easy. Statistics show that 78 percent of professional football players are penniless, divorced or unemployed two years after retiring from their sport. The program tries to help players develop a plan for life after sport and 220 athletes have taken part over the past six years.
Darwin Walker is one former student who avoided being a statistic. Today, he runs a number of successful businesses and thanks football for his accomplishments. “The concepts I learned about leadership have all come from playing the game of football,” says Walker. “The amount of study, amount of commitment, and time that you have to put into it is very much like being a successful business person.”
Shifting the skills learned on the field to the workplace seems natural to some, but the numbers show that’s not the case for everyone. Taheripour’s message to his students is a serious one: This is the time to build for the future, he tells them, because no matter how long your athletic career lasts, you are so much more than just an athlete.
29 By saying “athletes die two deaths”, the author means ________.
A. athletes suffer too many failures in their life
B. athletes have a sports life and a real life
C. being an athlete contributes little to life
D. athletes’ later life can be easily rebuilt
30. .Why is it difficult for professional athletes to decide what comes next?
A. They might have not thought of this during their playing days.
B. They have no idea whether to leave the game or not.
C. They think as athletes they can make more money.
D. They’re not willing to accept a new career.
31. What does Darwin Walker manage to avoid?
A. Making his sports career come to an end.
B. Being unsuccessful in rebuilding his life.
C. Going through the problem.
D. Making a difference.
32. What does the last paragraph imply?
A. An athlete should think about more than his athletic career.
B. An athlete’s sports career couldn’t last very long.
C. An athlete should end his career earlier to build his new life.
D. The longer an athlete’s career lasts, the more respect he receives.