World News for Students of English

30-10-2014 07:00

It’s underwater pumpkin carving like you’ve never seen it before, unless you have, then it’s pretty much the same thing. But these two divers at the Sea Life London Aquarium were not only faced with the challenge to see who could carve the fastest, they also had to fend off some inquisitive cownose rays.

Graham Banton and Rebecca Carter put their skills to the test and battled it out surrounded by over 500 marine creatures.

But Graham emerged as the winner, carving his pumpkin in just 1 minute and 57 seconds.

“I feel really good about winning, especially as I was competing against my girlfriend, which makes it feel even better, and I probably had a sharper knife as well. It’s actually tougher than it looks, obviously we were competing against each other and the clock. But the water play a big part too – makes you have to move really slowly, makes it much harder. Plus, in this display, we’ve got around 500 animals that are always coming to have a look, too.”

The carve-off marked the start of the Halloween season at the aquarium.

Difficult words: fend off (defend against something), inquisitive (curious), marine (something that comes from or lives in the ocean) creature (animal), the clock (time) carve-off (competition that has to do with carving).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com