THE CHAMP

BY GIRIJA RANI ASTHANA

‘Don’t panic Aman. I’m here to help you,’ Radha said

soothingly. ‘Just hold my waist with one hand and try to

paddle slowly with your feet. I’ll carry you with me.’ Aman

did exactly what he was told. Radha started swimming

back slowly. Now with Aman’s weight, it was tough for

her to swim against the current. She used all her strength

and inched back towards the river bank.

By the time she reached there, a big crowd had gathered.

Half a dozen hands caught hold of her. Someone said,

‘Let go off Aman. We are here.’

Then someone scooped her out of water and laid her

down slowly on the sand. She was panting and her throat

was dry. She shivered uncontrollably. Someone brought

a blanket and wrapped it around her. She closed her eyes.

LET’S READ

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‘Drink this,’ she heard her aunt’s voice and opened her

eyes. Her aunt was holding a hot mug of steaming coffee.

‘This will give you strength.’

Radha drank two mugs of coffee and felt quite relieved.

‘Hey champ. You’re great!’ She looked up and saw Ranjit

looking at her sheepishly. ‘What a swimmer you are! You

swim like a fish.’

‘But I don’t know any style,’ Radha replied with a tinge

of bitterness.

‘Oh! Please forgive us, Radha. We eat our words. But I

will love to learn your style… your very own style Radha,’

said Ranjit and held out his hand to her.

Radha’s face glowed with happiness.

LET’S READ

1) Whose voice did Radha hear ?

Ans.Radha heard her aunt’s voice.

2)What did aunt give Radha?

Ans.Her aunt gave her a hot mug of steaming coffee.

3) How many mugs of coffee did Radha drink?

Ans.Radha drank two mugs of coffee.

4)How did Ranjith look at Radha ?

Ans.Ranjith looked at Radha sheepishly.

5)What did Ranjith compare Radha’s swimming to?

Ans.Ranjith compared Radha’s swimming to a fish.

Eat our words- to admit that you were wrong about something.

Bitterness –anger and disappointment of being treated unfairly .

Tinge – colour

Relieved -relaxed

1)What did Radha’s aunt tell her?

Ans. Radha’s aunt told her to drink the coffee and that it will give her strength.

2)What did Ranjith tell Radha?

Ans. Ranjith appreciated Radha’s swimming. He also told that Radha swims like a fish .

3)How did Radha respond to Ranjith?

Ans.Radha replied to Ranjith by saying that she doesn’t know any styles in swimming. She says this with a tinge of bitterness.

4)What is the meaning of “eat our words”?

Ans. Ranjith feels shame about treating Radha in a rude manner. So he says that he admits that he was wrong about it and asks her to forgive her.

5)What was the feeling of Radha at the end of the story?

Ans. Radha was very happy and her face glowed with happiness .

Activity

Pick out lines from the story that Ranjith uses to appreciate Radha.

Ans. ‘Hey champ. You’re great!’

‘What a swimmer you are !’

‘You swim like a fish’.

ADVERBS

1)She was walking slowly.

2)My friend and I ran quickly to get the bus.

3)He stopped the car abruptly.

4)My grandfather smiled cheerfully.

5) They got here easily.

ADVERBS

• Adverbs are words that describes how an action is carried out.
• An adverb is a word which adds to the meaning of a verb. It tells us how a thing is done, when it is done, or where it is done.

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ACTIVITY:

Prepare a summary of the story “The Champ”.