Celebrity File Japan by Lint


英文		重要語句
■ One of the tennis tour's most popular players is Japan's own Ai Sugiyama. This hard-working pro keeps her career in perspective always smiling and looking like she enjoys her tennis. Don't let that smile fool you as she is as tough a competitor as anyone out there on the women's tour.		hotshot　名人 in perspective　秩序立って fool　…をだます competitor　対戦相手
■■ Although she has had better results this season in singles she is still a middle-of-the-pack singles player with only four titles to her name in since joining the WTA tour in 1992. On the other hand, she is a terrific doubles player having won 25 women's doubles titles including three Grand Slams. Also, her lone victory in mixed doubles was at the 1999 U.S. Open making it a grand total of four Slams in her trophy case.		middle-of-the-pack　中間クラスの WTA　女子テニス協会（Women's Tennis Associationの略） on the other hand　他方 terrific　素晴らしい grand slam　主要な大会 lone　唯一の
■■■ With five doubles titles so far this year including the French Open and Wimbledon crowns, she is on an amazing roll with her 2003 partner, Kim Clijsters of Belgium. It isn't just that the world's number two ranked singles player is raising Sugiyama's game. Sugiyama has been this sensational at doubles in the recent past being ranked number one in the world, not just this year but previously from Dec. 25, 2000, to Aug. 26, 2001.		crown　チャンピオン on a roll　絶好調で
■■■■ The wins at the Slam events are great and all but the most impressive feat in her career occurred at the 2003 State Farm Women's Tennis Classic in Scottsdale, Arizona. On Sunday, March 2, she started off her day playing the end of her Saturday rain-delayed singles semi-final beating Alexandra Stevenson 6-7, 7-5, 7-6. Then she proceeded to beat her doubles partner, Clijsters, 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to win the final.		all but　ほとんど feat　功績 start off ...　 …を始める rain-delayed　雨天延期になった proceed to do　続けて…する
■■■■■ It doesn't end there. Clijsters and Sugiyama then played their semi-final doubles match winning that 7-5, 6-0 over Marion Bartoli and Stephanie Cohen-Aloro. Then onto the final where the Belgian and Japanese pair beat Lindsay Davenport and Lisa Raymond 6-1, 6-4.
■■■■■■ The totals for the day―one singles title, a doubles title and ten amazing sets of top-level tennis played. Even more amazing was the singles victory was her first on the tour since 1998! No wonder this 28-year-old from Kanagawa Prefeture has the reputation on the WTA tour as a player who never gives up and always fights to the end.		no wonder ...　…も当然だ reputation　名声 fight to the end　戦い抜く
■■■■■■■ Yet it really is that smile that wins the fans ... and other players over to her side making her one of the most popular personalities in tennis. Mahesh Bhupathi of India, her mixed doubles partner, said it best after their 1999 U.S. Open title, "I think the best part [of playing with Sugiyama] is, win or lose, she's always smiling on the court. No matter what the situation is. That keeps me very relaxed."		bring out the best in someone　…のいいところを引き出す no matter what　たとえ何があっても

－written by Brian Maitland

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