Sydney Marathon medal mistakenly depicts Munich stadium

1. Have you ever taken part in a race or fun run?
2. What famous landmarks are in your city?
3. Have you seen a design mistake in public before?

unveil

to show something new to the public for the first time

depict

to show something in a picture or design

arena

a large, round or oval place for sports or events

stadium

a large building with seats for watching sports

ballot

a way to choose people by drawing names or votes

landmark

a well-known building or place that is easy to see

pattern

a repeated design of shapes or colors

blunder

a serious and careless mistake

1. What mistake were people saying the medal shows?
2. Which stadium does the marathon route pass in Sydney?
3. How many runners are set to take part on 30 August?
4. Who designed the gold and indigo pattern on the medal?
5. What similar problem happened at the Great North Run?

Past continuous

Use was/were + -ing for actions that were happening at a particular time in the past.

• Organisers were facing questions about a medal design.
• Online fans were saying it depicts the Allianz Arena in Munich.

Complete the sentences with the correct past continuous form.

1. One week before the race, organisers (face) ___ questions from fans.
2. Online supporters (say) ___ the medal showed the wrong stadium.
3. While the course (run) ___ past the stadium, people took photos.
4. At the unveiling, fans (compare) ___ the medal to another design.
5. During the meeting, artists (work) ___ on the medal pattern.

1. How should organisers check designs before a big event?
2. Is a medal design mistake a big problem for a marathon? Why?
3. What local landmark would you put on a city medal?
4. Should the organisers replace the medals or explain the error?