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5 must-reads on sports history and science

Oct 14, 2014 / Thu-Huong Ha

In 1936Jesse Owens broke the world record for the 100-meter dash in a mind-boggling 10.3
seconds. Yet had he raced in the 2013 World Championships, he would have had another 4
meters to go when Usain Bolt won in 9.58 seconds. That tremendous difference in
performance is apparent across the sports world cycling, gymnastics, the NBA so
whats going on? Are humans evolving quickly enough to be freakishly better at sports than
our counterparts from a mere century ago? Journalist David Epstein says no. In his TED
TalkAre athletes really getting faster, better, stronger? Epstein looks at factors from across
the past fifty years that have led to us to be much better at (some)sports. Bonus: Learn even
more from his detailed footnotes.

Below, read five sourceschosen by Epstein that dive deeper into

sports history and science.
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How weve changed as athletes

1. Morphological evolution of athletes over the 20th century

Kevin Norton and Tim Olds
Sports Medicine, September 2001

This is a great introduction to the work of Big Bang of Body Types scientists, who look at
height versus mass across sports in the latter half of the 20th century.

2. Why We Run
Bernd Heinrich
Harper Perennial, 2002

Written by a biologist and ultramarathoner, this book is a fascinating look at how

endurance has shaped physiology throughout the animal kingdom. (Endurance flying,
endurance running, even frogs and their endurance croaking!) Heinrich gives poetic
treatment to the role of ultra-endurance in human evolution, and applies some of what he
learns while studying animals to his own training. It works out pretty well, as he sets an
American record at the North American 100-kilometer championships.

3. The Four-Minute Mile

Roger Bannister
The Lyons Press, 2004

Shortly after breaking the four-minute barrier, Bannister still a med student sat down
to write a book about it. Elite athletes were truly amateurs at the time, and its a wonderful
look at a bygone era of sports. Bannister debunks some common myths like that
scientists were telling him his legs would crumble if he ran under four minutes and crafts
some terrifically expressive passages. Of his condition upon crossing the finish line, he
writes: I felt like an exploded flashlight with no will to live.'

4. Following the Trail of Broken Hearts

David Epstein
Sports Illustrated, December 10, 2007

I was at one time a competitive runner and science grad student, and it was the sudden
death of a friend and training partner steps after a mile race that first got me interested
in genetics and sports. This article was the first one that I published on the topic of sudden

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death in athletes, and touches on what can be done so that fewer athletes will die of sudden
cardiac arrest in the future.

Not much for exercise? Start here

5. Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights?

Alex Hutchinson
HarperCollins, 2011

If youre interested in sports science or medicine generally, but dont want to start
perusing technical journals on your own time, this book rounds up a massive amount of
exercise science and presents it in a manner anyone can understand. And its easily
searchable so you can jump to information that might be pertinent to your own fitness
goals.

David Epstein
Are athletes really getting faster, better, stronger?

Featured image credit: istockphoto

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Thu-Huong Ha writes and edits for TED. She likes to eat and learn, at times in tandem.

athletes David Epstein evolution fitness genetics history sports

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