permitted or to be permitted?

[williamwu]

I was the first Western TV reporter permitted to film a special unit. can i use "to be permitted" instead of " permitted"? if so, what is the difference between them? thanks in advance!

it is a test question. the provided key is "permitted" . but in some grammar books, like Practical English Usage , we can read:

Superlatives can be followed by an infinitive structure. The meaning is similarto an identifying relative clause (see 495).
He's the oldest athlete ever to win an Olympic gold medal.
(. . . who has ever won . . .)
This structure is also common with first, second, third etc, next, last and only.
who was the first person to climb Everest without oxygen?
The next to arrive was Mrs Patterson.
She's the only scientist to have won three Nobel prizes.

so i wonder if we can use " to be permitted " as another key.

 

[Tarheel]

I was the first Western TV reporter permitted to film a special unit. can i use "to be permitted" instead of " permitted"? if so, what is the difference between them? [................................]

it is a test question. the provided key is "permitted" . but in some grammar books, like Practical English Usage , we can read:

Superlatives can be followed by an infinitive structure. The meaning is similarto an identifying relative clause (see 495).
He's the oldest athlete ever to win an Olympic gold medal.
(. . . who has ever won . . .)
This structure is also common with first, second, third etc, next, last and only.
who was the first person to climb Everest without oxygen?
The next to arrive was Mrs Patterson.
She's the only scientist to have won three Nobel prizes.

so i wonder if we can use " to be permitted " as another key.

Yes, you can say it that way, but why would you want to?

The difference between them is that one of them is longer than the other one.

 

[teechar]

It is a test question. The provided answer key is "permitted".

Where did you find that question? Please cite it properly.