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The Best

How Elite Athletes Are Made
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( 232 ratings, 27 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Best reveals the pathways to sporting greatness by exploring the origins, psychology, genetics, practice, sports science, and technology behind superhuman performance. Through gripping personal stories and exclusive interviews with top athletes like Siya Kolisi, Marcus Rashford, Steph Curry, and Helen Glover, it explains how the world's best develop extraordinary skills to perform under immense pressure. This unique book combines original athlete insights with cutting-edge research to answer the question: "How did they do that?"
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book is ideal for youth athletes, parents, coaches, sports scientists, and passionate sports fans curious about the secrets behind elite performance and athletic development.

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The inside track on how champions are made, written by one of the world's top sports scientists and an award-winning sports journalist.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

"Insightful, thoughtful, and altogether wonderful." DANIEL COYLE, New York Times bestselling author of THE TALENT CODE

"This book is a must read." EDDIE JONES, Head Coach, England Rugby

"An engrossing guidebook for youth athletes, parents, coaches and perhaps even fantasy-league fans looking for a little insight." The Washington Post

The Best reveals how the most incredible sportspeople in the world get to the top and stay there. It is a unique look at the path to sporting greatness; a story of origins, serendipity, practice, genetics and the psychology of excellence, as well as of sports science and cutting-edge technology.

Packed with gripping personal stories and exclusive interviews with top athletes including Siya Kolisi, Marcus Rashford, Pete Sampras, Steph Curry, Jamie Carragher, Ian Poulter, Helen Glover, Ada Hegerberg, Elena Delle Donne, Joey Votto, and Mike Hussey, it explains how the best athletes develop the extraordinary skills that allow them to perform remarkable feats under extreme pressure.

Get inside the minds of champions and understand first-hand what makes them perform during high-octane competition, what they think about in the heat of the moment, and what drives them to do what they do.

By combining examples from numerous original interviews with top athletes and leading sports science research, The Best deconstructs superhuman performance and answers the question on every sports fan's mind: "How did they do that?"

"Fascinating and insightful... The Best isn't a one size fits all, it's a highly thought out, well-researched and accessible book that gives recommendations based on context and sport." JOANNE O'RIORDAN, The Irish Times

"...this book will redefine your approach to athlete development..." DAVID WHITESIDE, Director of Performance Science, New York Yankees

"...a fascinating and informative read for anyone interested in high-performance sport..." KEVIN THELWELL, Director of Sport, New York Red Bulls

About the Authors

A. Mark Williams is an academic and one of the world's leading authorities on expertise and its acquisition in sport. He has published 18 books and written over 500 scientific articles on how people become skilled and achieve success in sport and across other professional domains. He has worked across the globe as a consultant with numerous Olympic and professional sports and has vast experience as a scientist, author and educator, and as an applied sports scientist.

Tim Wigmore is the author of Cricket 2.0: Inside the T20 Revolution, the winner of the Wisden Book of the Year award for 2020.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

"Insightful, thoughtful, and altogether wonderful," praises Daniel Coyle, New York Times bestselling author of The Talent Code. Eddie Jones, Head Coach of England Rugby, calls it a must read for any coach aiming to develop elite athletes effectively. The Washington Post describes it as an engrossing guidebook for youth athletes, parents, and coaches. Additional acclaim highlights its lucid, jargon-free prose and its ability to deepen understanding and enjoyment of elite sport.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529304367

Publisher: John Murray Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 20 August 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: John Murray Business

Contributors:

  • Foreword by Matthew Syed
  • Foreword by Matthew Syed Consulting Ltd

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 32.0mm

Width: 132.0mm

Height: 214.0mm

Weight: 360g

Pages: 368

About the Author

A. Mark Williams is an academic and one of the world's leading authorities on expertise and its acquisition in sport. He has published 18 books and written over 500 scientific articles on how people become skilled and achieve success in sport and across other professional domains. He has worked across the globe as a consultant with numerous Olympic and professional sports and has vast experience as a scientist, author and educator, and as an applied sports scientist.

Tim Wigmore is the author of Cricket 2.0: Inside the T20 Revolution, the winner of the Wisden Book of the Year award for 2020. He is a sports writer for The Daily Telegraph, and has also written regularly for The New York Times, The Economist, the New Statesman and ESPNCricinfo. He is a former winner of the Young Cricket Journalist of the Year award and has been shortlisted for the Cricket Writer of the Year award.

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