Effects of Training and Genetics on Elite Athletes

Every elite athlete makes it look easy. Splashing through the water or striding gracefully down the track making it look effortless. Some people assume they are “naturals,” that their perfect DNA sequence is what has brought them to this level. Others argue that hard work and drive is what has made the difference, separating the elite from the average. These thoughts are the ones that give rise to the age-old nature vs. nurture debate. Countless hours of studies and research has concluded: it’s both. High performance sports consultant Ross Tucker puts it this way, “The science of success is about the coming together of dozens, perhaps hundreds of factors” (1). The relationship of such factors, including genetics, types and lengths of training, and environment are interlaced in such a tightly woven web that it has proven to be extremely difficult to discern exactly how much effect each one has.
Since the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003, University of Utah biology researcher Riddhita Chakraborty explains how scientists have been able to “read” a person’s entire genetic makeup (1). Genes are sequences of DNA that will determine characteristics like height, eye color, and hair color, just to name a few (1). Finding specific genes for each characteristic, despite the fact there are nearly 23,000 per person, seems like it would be a relatively simple process given today’s advanced technology. However, according to David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene, our genes appear to be far more complex than originally believed (24). As scientists have delved deeper into human genetics, the idea of finding one simple gene that correlates to a specific characteristic appears less and less realistic. For something even as b...

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