contender:a person who takes part in a competition or tries to win something 竞争者;角逐者;争夺者
Peter is a contender for a gold medal in the Olympics. 彼得是奥林匹克运动会金牌的争夺者.
a leading/serious/strong contender for the party leadership 该党领导权最重要的╱强劲的╱有实力的角逐者
intense:serious and often involving a lot of action in a short period of time 严肃紧张的;激烈的
intense competition/activity/speculation 激烈的竞争;紧张的活动;猖獗的投机活动
step something up:to increase the amount, speed, etc. of something 增加,提高(数量、速度等)
He has stepped up his training to prepare for the race. 他为准备那场赛跑加强了训练.