About this item
Never have the best sportspeople seemed so far removed from the rest of us, their prowess so unfathomable. So how are these extraordinary athletes made?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, practice, genetics and psychology. Packed with gripping personal stories and interviews with top athletes including Elena Delle Donne, Pete Sampras, Joey Votto, Steph Curry, Kurt Warner and Premier League superstars Marcus Rashford and Jamie Carragher, it explains how the best athletes develop the extraordinary skills that allow them to perform remarkable feats under extreme pressure. THE BEST uncovers startling truths of athletic greatness-including why younger siblings have more chance of becoming elite, which towns produce the most superstars, the role of informal play and the best time to be born in the school year.
About the Author
Mark Williams is a world-leading sports scientist with a focus on expertise and skill acquisition in sport and other professional domains. He is currently a Professor at the University of Utah, having previously worked as an academic in the UK (Liverpool, London) and in Australia (Sydney) .He is one of the most published scientists globally in areas associated with talent identification and development, the psychology of excellence and how to develop optimal learning environments for skill development. He has published almost 500 articles in numerous fields including sports science, psychology, neuroscience, medicine and education. He has written 17 academic books and delivered more than 200 keynote and invited lectures in over 30 countries. In addition to his impact as an academic and educator, he has worked extensively in high-performance sport as an applied sports scientist and as a coach educator. He has delivered courses and services for numerous national governing bodies across the globe, including UEFA, IOC, FIFA, The FA, as well as a multitude of professional sports teams in the Premier League, Premiership Rugby, National Basketball Association, National Football League, Major League Baseball, and several Olympic sports including GB Hockey and Sailing and the US Ski Team. He has also advised various armed forces and government agencies on educational policy. He is a Chartered Psychologist and a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, as well as the European College of Sports Science and the National Academy of Kinesiology in the US, and is a Fellow of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Science, where he has been accredited to work as a skill acquisition specialist in high-performance sport. He is Editor-in-Chief of three of the top journals in his field globally, including the Journal of Sports Sciences. He has wide experience of working on radio and television, having been involved in documentaries for several broadcasters including the BBC, CNN, Sky and the History Channel and his work has been reported by many newspapers including The Times (London and New York) , Daily Telegraph and Daily Express. He has undertaken radio work for BBC radio 2, 4, 5, and the Voice of America as well as several other channels globally.
