Something in the Water: Where Do Great Athletes Come From?

“Muck City”, Florida. Kinston, North Carolina. The courts of New York City in the 80s and 90s. These places share one unique trait: they found a way to produce a particular kind of great athlete, over and over. Is there something in the water – or is it something else? In our first episode, Jody talks to sports journalist Bomani Jones and Olympic table tennis coach Rajul Sheth about talent “hotbeds”, the role opportunity and access play in crafting success and the important distinction between having talent and achieving greatness. Transcripts for Good Sport are available at go.ted.com/GStranscripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

There's no better way to understand our world than through sports. Epic wins. Heartbreaking losses. The feeling you get when you look a teammate in the eye. Sports reveal the strange and fascinating psychology that competition brings out in all of us. Good Sport dives into worlds like F1 racing, table tennis, NBA shooting, and beyond. Asking questions like: Is "the zone" a real place? What are talent hotbeds, and how do we create them? And… is it still baseball if you're wearing a giant banana suit? From host Jody Avirgan (30 for 30, FiveThirtyEight, Radiotopia) and the TED Audio Collective, Good Sport is your guide through an array of stadiums, pitches, pools and slopes that shed a light on the ups and downs of being human.A quick favor: We're doing a listener survey, and we'd love to know what you think of the show. Please take a few minutes and fill it out at tedtalks.social/sportsurvey. Thanks! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.