The Sports Gene

Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance

By: David Epstein

Narrated by: David Epstein

Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

"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.

©2013 David Epstein (P)2013 Gildan Media LLC

Critic reviews

"Step by surprising step, David Epstein takes our hand, grips our mind, and leads us deeper and deeper into the fascinating jungle of sports and genetics... until we finally begin to see the miracle we've been watching in our stadiums and on our TV screens all our lives.” (Gary Smith, Sports Illustrated writer and four-time National Magazine Award winner)

Popular science

The author does an excellent job of presenting scientific facts in a compelling and untechnical way. Fascinating book. Especially good as a follow up to Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers.

Unfortunately Epstein is not the best reader of his own work, but it didn't affect the book's page-turner status.

Great book but did not like the reader

The performer insisted on using the accents of those quotes in the text. Horrible choice and totally unnecessary. Detracted from the information presented.

Weird reading at times

The reader consistently uses a southern accent when quoting sources that are rarely from the south.

Good listen

Very interesting book. The narrator thought it was a good idea to try and do impressions throughout the entire read, which was comical to the point of being irritating. I made it through.

What's with the accents...?

What is the cost to have an audiobook completely re-recorded? Asking for David Epstein.
I read through some of the negative reviews of this book and thought, "How bad could it be, REALLY?"
It was REALLY that bad. Every time Epstein tried to (completely and utterly unnecessarily) use one of the accents of the people he was quoting I first- cringed, second- wondered if I could fast-forward, and third- just realized I toned out what he was trying to say and would have to go back and re-listen to it anyway.
Don't get me wrong, the book was interesting but I haven't been this uncomfortable listening to a book in a long time.

Thoroughly researched and fascinating

What made the experience of listening to The Sports Gene the most enjoyable?

Epstein does a spectacular job reviewing the nature vs. nuture debate in athletic performance with an unbiased, critical eye. He covers the breadth of the current research, tells engaging stories about the athletes and scientists behind the statistics and breakthroughs, and paints a dynamic picture of the role genetics play in producing elite athletes, including the many shades of grey inherent in scientific research findings. I especially appreciated that he didn''t shy away from the question of race. I believe Epstein's review is the first thorough explanation of what we currently know about racial/ethnic differences in athletic performance. Worth reading purely for those chapters, if you ask me.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved the descriptions of all the scientists the author interviewed and visited in this book.

Have you listened to any of David Epstein’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't listened to any of his previous books, but his performance was really fantastic. He approximated the accents and voices of the characters quite well.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I would love to see this made into a documentary, but I'm not sure there is a better tag line than Inside The Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance

Any additional comments?

Required reading for coaches and trainers!

exceptionally interesting, carefully researched

fascinating look at the influences of nature and nurture in athletics. Epstein's writing is fluid and compelling. his reading pace was perfect except for his occasional attempts to mimic accents, which were usually not quite right, but I liked that he tried. I only wish there were more.

Scientific but understandable

Great book, great narrator. If you have ever read Outliers this is a perfect book for you because it takes you deeper into the practice vs opportunity realm.

Very detailed

A comprehensive study of genetics in sports. Constant data and references makes for a dull but interesting audio book. The reader is good.

Highly informative and well-researched

I didn't expect to enjoy this book this much. Actually, I got it from one of those Audible daily deals thinking that it would, at least, be something different.

In short, David Epstein studies human and animal structure from head to toe and compares athletic prowess between men and women and between people from different geographic regions, climate zones, and backgrounds, and he puts all of this information into perspective in a way that the average listener can understand.

For example, he explains the structural difference in various types of atheletes, such as why some countries produce runners while others produce jumpers and still others produce football players and why "nature vs. nurture" may or may not even matter in certain cases. He questions why it takes approximately 10,000 hours of practice to become a musical virtuoso. He explores the ins and outs of breeding sled dogs for the Iditerod and how the Iditerod was changed by one man who thought that a dog's determination mattered as much as his athletic build in terms of his breeding potential. He also explains why the breeding potential of humans doesn't necessarily work the same way.

The author narrated the book, himself, and did an excellent job. He was neither too stuffy nor too comic. His tone was relaxed and congenial. I could wish that all narrators of scientific material would do as good a job.

Overall, I thouroughly enjoyed this listen, and while I don't agree with the author on all topics, I found his work to be thoroughly researched and well presented. Anyone interested in sports science, biology, genetics, anthropology, or psychology will find this an invaluable reference. As a nonatheletic type, myself, I particularly enjoyed the part about inherent musical talent vs. practice. Apparently, in about ten years, I could be a virtuoso. Gotta go pick an instrument....