New book delves into science of sports stardom
Published on: 31st August 2011
Who will be the next Wayne Rooney, Jessica Ennis or Andy Murray? A new book co-edited by a Leeds Metropolitan University lecturer examines the factors that may help predict professional sport prowess.
‘Talent Identification and Development in Sport’ is published by Routledge and is co-edited by Dr Steve Cobley, Senior Lecturer in Skill Acquisition and Sport Psychology at Leeds Metropolitan and Jörg Schorer, research associate at the Institute of Sport Science at the Westfälische Wilhelms-University Münster, Germany.
Dr Cobley commented: “The book outlines and explains the 'current state of knowledge' (based on research) for how we can identify and develop sporting athletes. The book also provides an overview and insight of the factors that can help or hinder this process. The information, presented in a reader-friendly manner, has direct relevance and application to anyone involved in sport identification and development, for example coaches, national governing body employees, sport scientists, physical education teachers, parents, athletes, and students.”
“The research outlined in the book will certainly have impact on those working/associated in the area, and will change the way people consider and think about talent identification and development. At an organisational level, we think it will certainly change the applied practices in the field, and the way sport development systems are structured to support emerging athletes.”
The book is written by contributors from a diverse background including sport psychology, motor learning and skill acquisition, exercise physiology, and coaching. Topics include genetics and secondary factors such as birth date, cultural context and population size, perceptual motor skill acquisition and sports development policy. Also included are case studies examining international success stories.
“We’re hoping this book helps inform a better system for spotting talent early on and making the most of it,” adds Joseph Baker, a Professor from York University in Canada and visiting research fellow at Leeds Metropolitan, who is one of the lead authors: “We’ve tried to answer questions that have thus far been elusive, such as: how do elite athletes develop? When is the most appropriate time for talent identification and development interventions?”
