Review: <i>The Sports Gene</i>
Posted by J. P. Harpignies, <i>Biopolitical Times</i> guest contributor October 17, 2013
Biopolitical Times
David Epstein’s new book The Sports Gene is unfortunately named. Sports Genes? – with an emphasis on the question mark – would have been more accurate. Nonetheless the author, a former senior writer for Sports Illustrated, provides a thoughtful exploration of some very tricky terrain. The history of thinking about the possible genetic basis of athletic achievement has been littered with half-baked ideas, racist and sexist assumptions, and the propaganda of totalitarian governments. This tawdry legacy has, understandably, made many thoughtful contemporary scientists and social commentators hesitant about venturing into what can still be a minefield.
But the exploding study of genomes coupled with the relentless drive of elite athletes to rise to the top of their respective sports is bound to lead to attempts to boost performance through whatever “gene doping” methods might become available – some of them quite soon. It would be very surprising if, as the World Cup and Olympics approach, these issues don’t emerge into the larger public conversation as one scandal or another comes to light. Top-flight athletics will likely be one of the earliest and most obvious frontlines in the struggle over human enhancement, and fundamental questions about the genetic components of physical strength, endurance, and coordination are certain to rise to the fore.
In this context, Epstein provides a valuable service by exploring the current state of knowledge about the genetic factors involved in athletic success. He even-handedly looks at the eternal nature/nurture polarity, and immediately makes clear that environment, learning and culture play fundamentally important roles. He illustrates this in his amusing first chapter about how a leading woman softball pitcher easily struck out major league baseball’s top hitters because they weren’t trained to predict the behavior of softball pitches.
Epstein then leads us on a series of travels he took around the world to meet with researchers and extraordinary athletes from the U.S. to Kenya to the Arctic Circle to explore in depth such questions as why some specific ethnic groups excel at certain sports—e.g. Kenya’s Kalenjin in distance running; Jamaicans from a few parishes in sprinting; etc. He interviews the small number of leading researchers who are working on these questions and highlights the sometimes considerable differences in their conclusions and lines of inquiry, such as the possible link between malaria and muscle fiber composition that might help explain key differences between East and West African populations’ athletic propensities.
This is all far from settled science, but as one follows Epstein’s explorations, it becomes inescapably evident that there are clearly some genetic components involved in peak athletic performance. To cite one case, Epstein delves into the unusual family genetic mutation of Finland’s Eero Mäntyranta, who naturally has a 65% higher red blood cell count than average humans. This seems to have contributed to making him one of the world’s leading long-distance skiers of all time. Epstein also explores the breeding of Alaskan racing huskies and thoroughbreds to try to see what we can learn about the genetic factors in exceptional physical performance from work with those animals.
Epstein does not have an axe to grind. He wants to find out what we know in this domain, and he has literally gone to the ends of the earth looking for answers. He’s courageous to explore these emotionally charged topics, and he’s able to do it confidently because he is clearly not infected by racist ideas. He lets researchers with very different perspectives explain their work, and lets what evidence there is speak for itself without overstating any conclusions, which often leads to fascinating counter-intuitive insights.
The book delves into some technical genetic material, but it is geared to the literate general public and is well written by someone with an obvious passion for the material. It is a bit long and extensively detailed in parts, so finishing it requires a bit of stamina. But for someone with an affection for sports who is also interested in science and/or anyone involved in work on genetics issues, this is a very valuable contribution, currently the seminal text for the general public on this cutting-edge domain.
J. P. Harpignies, a writer/editor, conference producer and environmental activist, is an associate producer of the annual Bioneers Conference. A former program director at the New York Open Center, he is the author of three books: Political Ecosystems, Double Helix Hubris, and, most recently, Delusions of Normality.
But the exploding study of genomes coupled with the relentless drive of elite athletes to rise to the top of their respective sports is bound to lead to attempts to boost performance through whatever “gene doping” methods might become available – some of them quite soon. It would be very surprising if, as the World Cup and Olympics approach, these issues don’t emerge into the larger public conversation as one scandal or another comes to light. Top-flight athletics will likely be one of the earliest and most obvious frontlines in the struggle over human enhancement, and fundamental questions about the genetic components of physical strength, endurance, and coordination are certain to rise to the fore.
In this context, Epstein provides a valuable service by exploring the current state of knowledge about the genetic factors involved in athletic success. He even-handedly looks at the eternal nature/nurture polarity, and immediately makes clear that environment, learning and culture play fundamentally important roles. He illustrates this in his amusing first chapter about how a leading woman softball pitcher easily struck out major league baseball’s top hitters because they weren’t trained to predict the behavior of softball pitches.
Epstein then leads us on a series of travels he took around the world to meet with researchers and extraordinary athletes from the U.S. to Kenya to the Arctic Circle to explore in depth such questions as why some specific ethnic groups excel at certain sports—e.g. Kenya’s Kalenjin in distance running; Jamaicans from a few parishes in sprinting; etc. He interviews the small number of leading researchers who are working on these questions and highlights the sometimes considerable differences in their conclusions and lines of inquiry, such as the possible link between malaria and muscle fiber composition that might help explain key differences between East and West African populations’ athletic propensities.
This is all far from settled science, but as one follows Epstein’s explorations, it becomes inescapably evident that there are clearly some genetic components involved in peak athletic performance. To cite one case, Epstein delves into the unusual family genetic mutation of Finland’s Eero Mäntyranta, who naturally has a 65% higher red blood cell count than average humans. This seems to have contributed to making him one of the world’s leading long-distance skiers of all time. Epstein also explores the breeding of Alaskan racing huskies and thoroughbreds to try to see what we can learn about the genetic factors in exceptional physical performance from work with those animals.
Epstein does not have an axe to grind. He wants to find out what we know in this domain, and he has literally gone to the ends of the earth looking for answers. He’s courageous to explore these emotionally charged topics, and he’s able to do it confidently because he is clearly not infected by racist ideas. He lets researchers with very different perspectives explain their work, and lets what evidence there is speak for itself without overstating any conclusions, which often leads to fascinating counter-intuitive insights.
The book delves into some technical genetic material, but it is geared to the literate general public and is well written by someone with an obvious passion for the material. It is a bit long and extensively detailed in parts, so finishing it requires a bit of stamina. But for someone with an affection for sports who is also interested in science and/or anyone involved in work on genetics issues, this is a very valuable contribution, currently the seminal text for the general public on this cutting-edge domain.
J. P. Harpignies, a writer/editor, conference producer and environmental activist, is an associate producer of the annual Bioneers Conference. A former program director at the New York Open Center, he is the author of three books: Political Ecosystems, Double Helix Hubris, and, most recently, Delusions of Normality.