The Sports Gene The Sports Gene

The Sports Gene

Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance

    • 4.0 • 177 Ratings
    • $13.99
    • $13.99

Publisher Description

In high school, I wondered whether the Jamaican Americans who made our track team so successful might carry some special speed gene from their tiny island. In college, I ran against Kenyans, and wondered whether endurance genes might have traveled with them from East Africa. At the same time, I began to notice that a training group on my team could consist of five men who run next to one another, stride for stride, day after day, and nonetheless turn out five entirely different runners. How could this be?



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 controversial and engaging exploration of athletic success, Sports Illustrated senior writer David Epstein 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.



Along the way, Epstein dispels many of our perceptions about why top athletes excel. He shows why some skills that we assume are innate, like the bullet-fast reactions of a baseball or cricket batter, are not, and why other characteristics that we assume are entirely voluntary, like an athlete’s will to train, might in fact have important genetic components.



This subject necessarily involves digging deep into sensitive topics like race and gender. Epstein explores controversial questions such as:



• Are black athletes genetically predetermined to dominate both sprinting and distance running, and are their abilities influenced by Africa’s geography?

• Are there genetic reasons to separate male and female athletes in competition?

• Should we test the genes of young children to determine if they are destined for stardom?

• Can genetic testing determine who is at risk of injury, brain damage, or even death on the field?


Through on-the-ground reporting from below the equator and above the Arctic Circle, revealing conversations with leading scientists and Olympic champions, and interviews with athletes who have rare genetic mutations or physical traits, Epstein forces us to rethink the very nature of athleticism.

GENRE
Sports & Outdoors
RELEASED
2013
August 1
LANGUAGE
EN
English
LENGTH
352
Pages
PUBLISHER
Penguin Publishing Group
SELLER
PENGUIN GROUP USA, INC.
SIZE
1.7
MB

Customer Reviews

livemusiclife ,

Must read for the sports romantic and scientist alike

Epstein explores complex genetic questions that reach far beyond sports in a way that is both understandable and entertaining. He somehow figures out a way to make scientific reading for the layperson feel comfortable. Through most of the book, the reader feels almost as if Epstein is sitting in the same room answering questions as he astutely anticipates your confusion and breaks it down with clarity and confidence. Maybe most importantly though, he finally takes on the 10,000 hour expertise theory popularized by Malcolm Gladwell with solid evidence and conviction.

But away from the science, it's just a must read for sports fans. The questions I have had my whole life playing sports are explored in a way that is engaging and witty. His stories conjure up vivid images for the reader while tracing a pretty consistent narrative in a book that could easily otherwise be all over the place. If you follow Epstein's columns in Sports Illustrated, you won't be able to put this one down.

MikeDuck_5 ,

Great book!

I had read this for my Exercise Science and enjoyed every bit of it. If you’re a sports fanatic of any kind this book is for you!

More Books Like This

This Is Your Brain on Sports This Is Your Brain on Sports
2016
The Happy Runner The Happy Runner
2018
Win at All Costs Win at All Costs
2020
Finding Triathlon Finding Triathlon
2015
The Quotable Runner The Quotable Runner
2015
The Greatest The Greatest
2017

More Books by David Epstein

Range Range
2019
Amplitud (Range) Amplitud (Range)
2020
Range : Le règne des généralistes Range : Le règne des généralistes
2021
Le gène du sport Le gène du sport
2014
Športový gén Športový gén
2014
Sokoldalúság Sokoldalúság
2021

Customers Also Bought

The Mindful Athlete The Mindful Athlete
2015
Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning
2015
The Best The Best
2020
Human Diversity Human Diversity
2020
The Brain's Way of Healing The Brain's Way of Healing
2015
Do Hard Things Do Hard Things
2022