Air Jordan is a nickname for Michael Jordan, one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Michael Jordan was born in 1963 in Brooklyn, New York. In 1984, he went to play for the Chicago Bulls. He went on to win six championships during his time with the team (1991-1993, 1996-1998). His height of 6 feet 6 inches (198 centimeters) led to his nickname "Air Jordan" because he often seemed to be flying through the air when he leaped up to make a basket. He retired twice from the Chicago Bulls, first in 1993 and then in 1999. He came out of retirement again for a short time to play for the Washington Wizards, but retired from basketball for the third and final time in 2003. His popularity with fans has helped basketball become one of the world's most popular spectator sports. Today the name "Air Jordan" is also often used to refer to the popular brand of basketball shoes named after Jordan.
飞人乔丹是球迷们对迈克尔·乔丹的昵称。迈克尔·乔丹是美国杰出的篮球运动员。他1963年出生在纽约市。从他1984年加入芝加哥公牛队到1998年为止，乔丹率领该队六次赢得NBA总冠军，11次被评为NBA最佳球员，10次荣获“得分王”称号。虽然他曾在1993年和1999年两次宣布退役，但其后又重返赛场。在2003年他正式宣布退役。他身高1.98米，当他跃起扣篮时身体就像在空中飞行，极具弹跳能力，球艺出众，因而被称为“飞人乔丹”。如今Air Jordan也是一个以乔丹名字命名的球鞋的品牌名。
（本文选自人民教育出版社《中学英语文化背景知识手册》，2008年8月第1版）
