Bounce: The Myth of Talent and the Power of Practice

Everyone knows that David Beckham crosses the ball better than anyone, and that Tiger Woods never chokes. But what are the hidden factors which allow the most successful sports stars to rise above their competitors — and are they shared by virtuosos in other fields? What are the real secrets of sporting success, and what lessons do they offer about life in general? Matthew Syed explains why Tiger Woods doesn't choke, why the best figure skaters are those that have fallen over the most and why one small street in Reading — his own — has produced more top table tennis players than the rest of the country put together. As a three-time Commonwealth table-tennis champion and two-time Olympian, Matthew is perfectly placed to show just what it takes to get to the top in any discipline. And as an award-winning writer for the sports and comment pages of The Times — and holder of a prize-winning degree from Oxford University — he knows the facts, the science and the personalities better than anyone. Bounce is not simply the 'Freakonomics' of sport though — it looks at big questions such as the nature of talent, what kind of practice actually works, how to achieve motivation, drugs in sport (and life) and whether black people really are faster runners. Fresh, ground-breaking and tackling subjects with wide appeal, this is sure to be one of the most talked-about books of the year.