The Times Australia
The Times World News

.

Elite athletes are generally smarter than us – cognitive sciences can explain why

  • Written by Alberto Filgueiras, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, CQUniversity Australia



The year was 1920. It was George “Babe” Ruth’s first season playing for the New York Yankees.

During that season, he scored an amazing 54 home runs. He alone scored more home runs than any team.

However, “The Bambino,” as he was nicknamed, was far from an example of athletic prowess. He was chubby, did not like to practice and was constantly seen at parties drinking and gambling.

So, how could he achieve such greatness on the baseball field?

To answer this question, a prominent sportswriter from the New York Times, Hugh Fullerton, knocked on the door of the Columbia University psychology lab where two graduate researchers, Albert Johanson and Joseph Holmes, were prompted to answer.

Fullerton’s enquiry was simple: if Ruth’s achievements could not be explained by physical abilities, then what other factors might be involved?

It was no surprise when the researchers discovered Ruth scored higher than the average population in every psychological test he did.

Ruth’s testing results formed the basis of an article by Fullerton in Popular Science Monthly titled: “Why Babe Ruth is greatest home-run hitter[1]”.

These findings changed the popular perspective on sport performance, suggesting physical attributes weren’t the only reason athletes were able to excel – mental skills were finally on centre stage.

The evolution of sport psychology

Ruth outperformed normal people in attention, memory and cognitive tasks.

It took almost a century for sport scientists to find out whether those high-level skills were a common trait for elite athletes or if Ruth was just a genius.

In an exploratory meta-analysis published in 2018[2], focusing on athletes only, my colleagues and I found athletes recruited brain areas involved with attention, memory and motor control when making sport-related decisions.

Then, in 2022, a review by Nicole Logan and colleagues[3] from Northeastern University in the United States gathered 41 studies comparing professional athletes and normal controls (people like us).

Data from 5,339 participants (including 2267 athletes) was meta-analysed. The results showed significantly higher scores in attention and decision-making among professional athletes compared to normal people.

So athletes generally outperform us in cognitive tasks – but why?

It was the emergence of cognitive neuroscience that allowed scientists to map neural networks involved in sport imagery (such as athletes’ abilities to reproduce sport-related situations in their minds) and athletes’ decision-making regarding in-game situations.

Elite athletes are generally well-matched in terms of their physical abilities but their mental skills can set them apart.

Elite athlete are smarter than amateur athletes as well

Decision-making is a human skill. The more you practice, the better you get.

But good decision-makers such as elite athletes rely on other cognitive skills to simulate in their minds the potential outcomes of any given situation.

Here is an example – imagine a rugby league match.

A halfback is starting a play with his team close to the try line. He has several teammates to pass the ball to but he decides to tuck the ball under his arm and sprint to score a try – he had seen open space in the opponent’s defensive line.

In a fraction of a second, he had to make a decision based on the information he had available. Using imagery, he had to consider every other player’s position in the field, calculating the best route for each possible pass or run he could make.

It requires high levels of attention to visually scan the field, stop any distraction from clouding thoughts, memory to hold and retrieve information while processing all alternatives, and creativity to imagine the same play from different angles.

These three skills – attention, memory and creativity – have technical names: inhibitory control, working memory and cognitive flexibility, respectively.

They are the three core executive functions used by the brain to execute complex tasks.

The most groundbreaking study about the role of executive functions in sport performance came out in 2012.

Torbjörn Vestberg and colleagues from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden compared the three core executive functions of elite soccer players from the first division with their counterparts from the fourth division (usually only semi-professional athletes).

The higher division outperformed the lower division players in all executive functions tasks[4].

Similar results were found in other studies through the past decade, including one from my colleagues and I in 2023[5], which compared female soccer and futsal players with their amateur counterparts.

We found elite athletes outperform regular people in decision-making and executive functioning.

Athletes outsmart us for a reason: practice

Elite athletes are highly specialised decision-makers because they practice it every day.

They outperform normal people in cognitive flexibility and inhibition[6], which might lead to smarter decisions on and off court.

However, the scientific literature still lacks evidence on the other core executive function, the working memory. In my current research I am trying to fill this gap.

Being creative and finding better solutions to overcome an opponent is what sport is about, whereas many normal people like us struggle when facing large amounts of information at the same time.

Practice, and a bit of biological disposition, makes most elite athletes smarter than us.

Read more https://theconversation.com/elite-athletes-are-generally-smarter-than-us-cognitive-sciences-can-explain-why-234665

Times Magazine

Understanding ITIL 4 and PRINCE2 Project Management Synergy

Key Highlights ITIL 4 focuses on IT service management, emphasising continual improvement and value creation through modern digital transformation approaches. PRINCE2 project management supports systematic planning and execution of projects wit...

What AI Adoption Means for the Future of Workplace Risk Management

Image by freepik As industrial operations become more complex and fast-paced, the risks faced by workers and employers alike continue to grow. Traditional safety models—reliant on manual oversight, reactive investigations, and standardised checklist...

From Beach Bops to Alpine Anthems: Your Sonos Survival Guide for a Long Weekend Escape

Alright, fellow adventurers and relaxation enthusiasts! So, you've packed your bags, charged your devices, and mentally prepared for that glorious King's Birthday long weekend. But hold on, are you really ready? Because a true long weekend warrior kn...

Effective Commercial Pest Control Solutions for a Safer Workplace

Keeping a workplace clean, safe, and free from pests is essential for maintaining productivity, protecting employee health, and upholding a company's reputation. Pests pose health risks, can cause structural damage, and can lead to serious legal an...

The Science Behind Reverse Osmosis and Why It Matters

What is reverse osmosis? Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification process that removes contaminants by forcing water through a semi-permeable membrane. This membrane allows only water molecules to pass through while blocking impurities such as...

Foodbank Queensland celebrates local hero for National Volunteer Week

Stephen Carey is a bit bananas.   He splits his time between his insurance broker business, caring for his young family, and volunteering for Foodbank Queensland one day a week. He’s even run the Bridge to Brisbane in a banana suit to raise mon...

The Times Features

Metal Roof Replacement Cost Per Square Metre in 2025: A Comprehensive Guide for Australian Homeowners

In recent years, the trend of installing metal roofs has surged across Australia. With their reputation for being both robust and visually appealing, it's easy to understand thei...

Why You’re Always Adjusting Your Bra — and What to Do Instead

Image by freepik It starts with a gentle tug, then a subtle shift, and before you know it, you're adjusting your bra again — in the middle of work, at dinner, even on the couch. I...

How to Tell If Your Eyes Are Working Harder Than They Should Be

Image by freepik Most of us take our vision for granted—until it starts to let us down. Whether it's squinting at your phone, rubbing your eyes at the end of the day, or feeling ...

Ways to Attract Tenants in a Competitive Rental Market

In the kind of rental market we’ve got now, standing out is half the battle. The other half? Actually getting someone to sign that lease. With interest rates doing backflips and ...

Top Tips for Finding the Ideal Block to Build Your Home

There’s something deeply personal and exciting about building your own home. You’re not just choosing paint colours or furniture, you’re creating a space that reflects your lifes...

The Home Buying Process Explained Step by Step

Buying a home is a thrilling milestone, but it can also feel like navigating a maze without a map. With paperwork, finances, and decisions at every turn, understanding the home-b...