Certain sports demand rigorous training and exceptional skill, while others appear to hinge more heavily on genetic predisposition. A user asked the forum, “Which sport requires the least skill and is mostly down to genetics?”. Here are some responses he got!
POLO
“You need the specific genetics of being the child of someone rich enough that you can learn to play polo.”
BASKETBALL
“So you need the skill to be the best in any field, but there are some sports where genetics excludes you. You could be the best basketball player in the world, but if you’re 5’ 1”, it ain’t going to happen for you. The reverse is true if you’re 7’ and want to be a professional jockey.”
FOX HUNTING
“Without the required genetics, you don’t get to play. And probably don’t want to, but that’s irrelevant to the question.”
SWIMMING
“Swimming is one where you need skill, but if you have the Michael Phelps body type you are naturally in much better shape than any short torso person no matter how much effort they put in.”
BODYBUILDING
“Bodybuilding has me thoroughly confused because your ceiling is limited by sports training. So, what’s the point if you don’t have the genetics?”
EQUESTRIAN
“I’m pretty sure that if your genetic donors can afford to buy, feed, house, train, and saddle a horse for you, that’s a big step up.”
SPRINTING
“There’s always that gifted high schooler who never played a sport and finishes a 100m in the range of 10.5 to 11.5 seconds.”
CHEESE ROLLING
“There aren’t any professionals who train year-round. Most contestants don’t even train at all, and their skills are relatively undeveloped. People in small towns tend to be relatively closely related to each other.”
ROWING AND GYMNASTICS
“Sprinting, rowing, and gymnastics all have large genetic components to them in terms of body shape and genetics.”
RUNNING
“Running, either sprinting or distance. You need the right combination of slow-fast twitch muscle (different combinations for either sprinting or distance) and cardiovascular system.”
FOOTBALL
“Some of the positions in football (American) seem to have players from time to time who didn’t even play until late high school, which makes me think it’s mostly raw physical talent. It’s like a defensive line. There are certain techniques to learn, but it seems like the sport I most often hear “coach him up.” You can’t “coach up” many skills in sports that take years to learn.”
SAILING
“Sailing, you must have the genetics of someone with a lot of money. Owning a boat and being able to push it to the limit and potentially destroy is for families with disposable income.”
GYMNASTIC
“Gymnastics and ballet. You need to be fairly small, and while you can train flexibility, you also need to be genetically more flexible. Ballet also has requirements on the shape of the foot, which is genetic.”
SHOTPUT
“The hammer or shotput. It’s throwing a heavy ball away.”
BASEBALL
“Baseball, but specifically pitching. Some guys just have a cannon of an arm naturally. Yes, it can be trained, but only so much.”
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This article was originally published on Mrs. Daaku Studio.