Charlotte Drury spent nearly seven years preparing for the Rio Olympics, and now she’s not sure if she’ll even watch them. …
The broken bone in her right ankle and the black boot covering it are a constant reminder of how close she came to representing the United States as its top trampoline gymnast.
“It was devastating, it still is devastating,” Drury said recently. …
How far will you go to achieve a dream? That’s the question a celebrated coach poses to Katie and Eric Knox after he sees their daughter Devon, a gymnastics prodigy and Olympic hopeful, compete. For the Knoxes there are no limits–until a violent death rocks their close-knit gymnastics community and everything they have worked so hard for is suddenly at risk. …
Though the author doesn’t know the difference between a forward and backward hip circle, she clearly did some research into the club drama that is (sometimes) the parents booster club. A closed group. Secrets and rumours.
Most coaches would enjoy this intense novel, I think. I wouldn’t recommend it for gymnasts.
Becky Downie, Great Britain
Daria Spiridonova, Russia
Fan Yilin, China
Madison Kocian, USA
Elisabeth Seitz, Germany
Aliya Mustafina, Russia
Tan Jiaxin, China
Sophie Scheder, Germany
MANY told me I MUST read this book. And I finally did get to it.
Very entertaining. And thought provoking.
Are stars like Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, and Serena Williams genetic freaks put on Earth to dominate their respective sports? Or are they simply normal people who overcame their biological limits through sheer force of will and obsessive training?
In this controversial and engaging exploration of athletic success and the so-called 10,000-hour rule, David Epstein tackles the great nature vs. nurture debate and traces how far science has come in solving it. …
I wouldn’t count on every factoid being correct. He’s out of date on women’s Artistic Gymnastics, for example.
The 10,000-hour rule is quickly debunked, David Epstein repeatedly pointing out that researcher Anders Ericsson NEVER called it a “rule”. If you train Beam seriously for 10,000 hours, your chances of making it to the Olympic Beam final are still infinitesimal.
There’s no controversy. The best of the best have both very specific genetics and excellent training.