What does it take to become an elite athlete? Sports performance training such as that which is offered at Athletic Republic is one element of the equation -- but as we all know, athletic success is attributable to far more than a conditioning program, however sophisticated. Mark Williams, a Professor at the University of Utah and recognized expert in skill acquisition has recently published a book that delves into all the factors that go into creating a highly successful athlete. Titled “The Best: How Elite Athletes are Made,” it utilizes stories, interviews with leading athletes, and research to uncover some surprising answers.
We spoke with Professor Williams recently to learn more about the book and its findings. According to him, much of an athlete’s success is attributable to things over which they have no control whatsoever. Their parents’ background and resources will have an enormous impact. So, surprisingly enough, will birth order. That’s right, younger siblings are statistically more likely to be successful in sport. “They not only have the early exposure to the sports that their siblings play, but they also benefit from the more relaxed parenting approach that the youngest in a family generally enjoy,” says Williams. “They’re often less pampered, and therefore often more resilient.”
Of course, where the athletes are born and raised is a big factor -- not only in terms of local access to opportunities to play, but the local sports culture. Cities where there is a significant amount of casual “street sport” tend to be hotbeds for elite athletes who pick up a sport early and put in long hours playing in unstructured settings. And then, of course, there is sheer luck and serendipity, unexpected moments that can make or break a career.
But it’s not all luck; there are also the physical AND mental adaptations that occur in an athlete after prolonged participation in a sport. Those who rise to the top are those who are best at developing “game intelligence” and mental toughness. These mental aspects, while shaped by genetics, are skills that can be developed and refined with a lot of work and study, which Williams lays out in many entertaining and enlightening examples.
While he doesn’t examine the physical elements of athleticism as much as the mental ones, he did acknowledge in our conversation that as athletes develop, their physical abilities and, correspondingly, their training needs to become more and more specific to the demands of their sport. However, it also needs to be built on a solid foundation of more “generic” conditioning requirements, thereby laying a base of general athletic skills. This is a progression that is familiar for anyone who trains at Athletic Republic, where the initial focus is on perfecting fundamental movement skills before honing in on the functional movement skills required by each sport.
The benefits are not merely physical; according to Williams, “Anxiety arises when you perceive an imbalance between the challenges ahead of you and your ability to cope. If you feel physically well-prepared, then this will enhance confidence and help insulate you to a degree from the negative impact of anxiety and increase your perceived control over the outcome.” This confidence is an important side benefit of a thorough training system like Athletic Republic’s.
But don’t take our word for it. We highly recommend The Best: How Elite Athletes are Made as a great sports psychology book for athletes, parents, and coaches alike. Its many insights and ideas should be valuable to anyone dedicated to the pursuit of athletic excellence.
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