The Sharp Minds of Elite Athletes

We marvel at the grace, strength, agility, and power of athletes. We know that they can move faster, shoot more accurately, or lift heavier things than the average human. But are their minds as good and fit as their bodies?

In the last few decades, scientists have studied the minds of athletes. With sophisticated brain imaging techniques, they found out that their subjects' minds also carry a mental advantage for conditions in and beyond sports. For example, studies showed that elite athletes are faster and more accurate in recalling and analysing tactical play formations of their sport. They are also more efficient and quicker in searching a target in their sport such as a small fraction-of-a-second opening that will enable a boxer to hit his opponent.

Research has also revealed that athletes are better in foreseeing the actions of their opponents and the consequences of that action or their own counter-action than expert viewers and sports commentators. For example, a basketball player can predict the outcome of a free-throw earlier and more accurately than viewers. By using visual cues, he can predict the throw's success with greater than 30 percent accuracy even before the ball leaves the shooter's hand! Because of their sharper minds, athletes have an advantage of having a broader visual attention, the ability to focus on what is presently important to what they are doing while disregarding distractions. For example, when they drive a race car, they can see competitors behind or beside them, openings that give them advantages, or dangers on the track while ignoring cheers from the audience and other distractions. So, if you want to sharpen your mind, try to engage in a sporting activity.