Name: The sports gene
ISBN: 9781591845119

The sports gene

This book explores the roles of both genetics and training in athletic success, arguing that both are equally necessary components of athletic achievement while considering such topics as race, gender, and genetic testing.We all knew a star athlete in high school. The one who made it look so easy. He was the starting quarterback and shortstop; she was the all-state point guard and high-jumper. Naturals. Or were they? The debate is as old as physical competition. Are stars like Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, and Serena Williams genetic freaks put on Earth to dominate their respective sports? Or are they simply normal people who overcame their biological limits through sheer force of will and obsessive training? The truth is far messier than a simple dichotomy between nature and nurture. In the decade since the sequencing of the human genome, researchers have slowly begun to uncover how the relationship between biological endowments and a competitor's training environment affects athleticism. Sports scientists have gradually entered the era of modern genetic research. In this exploration of athletic success, the author, a senior writer at Sports Illustrated magazine tackles the great nature vs. nurture debate and traces how far science has come in solving this great riddle. He investigates the so-called 10,000-hour rule to uncover whether rigorous and consistent practice from a young age is the only route to athletic excellence.

What Hacker News says

sienDec 2019

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The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance by David Epstein.

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slyallDec 2018

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gnarcoregrizzJun 2018

If you want to explore that topic more, check out "The Sports Gene." Spoiler alert: it comes to a similar conclusion. It's one of the best books I've read though!

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griffinkellyMar 2018

Read Sports Gene by David Epstein. He discusses a lot of the genetics vs. developing one's body specifically for a sport, with a large focus on distance running.

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mattmAug 2017

"The Sports Gene" [1] is an excellent book on this topic backed up by not only research but entertaining stories as well. It has a section about Dan but also has stories about a world champion high jumper who dedicated his life to high jumping only to be surpassed by someone who wasn't really interested in it and had been practicing for less than a year.

I think the lesson to take away from Dan's experience and what the author of this book argues as well is that yes, practice can make you a lot better. But to be among the best in the world, you'll need to have some sort of genetic advantage.

[1] https://www.amazon.ca/Sports-Gene-Extraordinary-Athletic-Per...

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savvas_tjApr 2016

The "why do some kids have more grit than others?" questions could just come down to mix of inheriting that trait and/or living in an environment that fosters the development and growth that trait.

There is an interesting book called "The Sports Gene" that has a section that talks about how someone bred sled dogs based on their "grit" characteristic and was able to be a successful dog sledder because of it.

Also that book is also a great read about how inherited traits and environment interact with each other. And thanks for the podcast suggestion.

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