Genetic Potential and Sports
and perhaps the notion of TELOS
A few weeks ago some joker from the midwest wrote an article questioning cycling/the tour as a sport. This article that was shared greatly among the cycling community acted to enraged many readers, including me. For this guy to have a job where he is being paid to share his thoughts is what angered me the most. To think he has an editor as equally uninformed enraged me even greater. When people talk about guns...I step back and listen. I know nothing about guns....don't claim to know anything...don't care to know anything....there are gun experts and those guys are not me. My opinion on guns....well I have one, but that is an opinion not factual information.
This Mike Imrem character said so many things that revealed that he not only does not know about cycling, but he lacks any idea about sport as a whole. If he were to analize football he would have to understand that when a budding athlete is moving through the ranks of pee-wee leagues onto high school and then college ball that this individual must realize that they have strengths and short comings dictated by their build. As much as a lineman may want to carry the ball....well....they may lack the speed and agility, thus their dinosaur build is better placed on the line. Or the tight end...not fast enough to be wide reciever....not strong or quick enough to be a running back....a kicker or a punter....a quarter back.....you name the position. There are body types that dictate to a certain degree who would be best suited for each position. It does not take a genius to see this.....these words from a person who has not seen any more than an occassional highlight since I stopped watching sports on TV some 15 years ago. Now, if this Imrem character was shrewd enough to understand that there are basic limitations to where a person would be best suited to play on the football field than maybe he should be shrewd enough to expand this notion to sports as a whole.
Clearly a world class jockey would not make a good basketball player and vice versa. Clearly the build of a world class cyclist is different to a world class running back...obvious enough. Where a bulky muscular build is an advantage when getting groped by a stack of steroid bound dinosaurs, this same build as strong as it may be is certainly going to be a grand disadvantage to the cyclist climbing uphill.
te·los Pronunciation: 'te-"läs, 'tE-Function: nounEtymology: Greek; probably akin to Greek tellein to accomplish, tlEnai to bear -- more at TOLERATEDate: 1904: an ultimate end
or perhaps
tel·e·o·log·i·cal Pronunciation: "te-lE-&-'lä-ji-k&l, "tE-Variant(s): also tel·e·o·log·ic /-'lä-jik/Function: adjectiveDate: 1798: exhibiting or relating to design or purpose especially in nature- tel·e·o·log·i·cal·ly /-ji-k(&-)lE/ adverb
There is something amazing in this world that guides people to one direction or another. Why did Wayne Gretzsky play hockey andMichael Jordan play basketball? Would each of them of been as prolific had that each been drawn to the other's sport? Sure their achievements are a testiment to their hard work and dedication, but...there is certainly something more. Is somebody actually 'a natural?'
Height is clearly an advantage in basketball...
yet this same advantage would be a distinct disadvantage in various other sports.
Great gurth is an advantage for linemen in american football or sumo wrestling in Japan, but these qualities are clearly not advantages in most other sports. Desire will only take an athlete so far.... It is unlikely that with all the hardwork in the world that Lance Armstrong could ever dunk on a regulation height rim....but he can ride a bike like no other.
that is enough for now
this is a discussion that could drag on forever
but the seed is planted
the basis of my idea is layed out
expand on it if you will
or dispell any of my misconceptions
do what you will
I best get back to work
next topic?
performance enhancement drugs?
(and I am not talking about Viagra)
who uses them?
is it still cheating even if those drugs are not banned?
can someone be competitive against the other atheletes if they are clean while the others use?
can we get two fields of athletes...
let the clean athletes compete and have the enhancement drug using atheletes go home?
and perhaps the notion of TELOS
A few weeks ago some joker from the midwest wrote an article questioning cycling/the tour as a sport. This article that was shared greatly among the cycling community acted to enraged many readers, including me. For this guy to have a job where he is being paid to share his thoughts is what angered me the most. To think he has an editor as equally uninformed enraged me even greater. When people talk about guns...I step back and listen. I know nothing about guns....don't claim to know anything...don't care to know anything....there are gun experts and those guys are not me. My opinion on guns....well I have one, but that is an opinion not factual information.
This Mike Imrem character said so many things that revealed that he not only does not know about cycling, but he lacks any idea about sport as a whole. If he were to analize football he would have to understand that when a budding athlete is moving through the ranks of pee-wee leagues onto high school and then college ball that this individual must realize that they have strengths and short comings dictated by their build. As much as a lineman may want to carry the ball....well....they may lack the speed and agility, thus their dinosaur build is better placed on the line. Or the tight end...not fast enough to be wide reciever....not strong or quick enough to be a running back....a kicker or a punter....a quarter back.....you name the position. There are body types that dictate to a certain degree who would be best suited for each position. It does not take a genius to see this.....these words from a person who has not seen any more than an occassional highlight since I stopped watching sports on TV some 15 years ago. Now, if this Imrem character was shrewd enough to understand that there are basic limitations to where a person would be best suited to play on the football field than maybe he should be shrewd enough to expand this notion to sports as a whole.
Clearly a world class jockey would not make a good basketball player and vice versa. Clearly the build of a world class cyclist is different to a world class running back...obvious enough. Where a bulky muscular build is an advantage when getting groped by a stack of steroid bound dinosaurs, this same build as strong as it may be is certainly going to be a grand disadvantage to the cyclist climbing uphill.
te·los Pronunciation: 'te-"läs, 'tE-Function: nounEtymology: Greek; probably akin to Greek tellein to accomplish, tlEnai to bear -- more at TOLERATEDate: 1904: an ultimate end
or perhaps
tel·e·o·log·i·cal Pronunciation: "te-lE-&-'lä-ji-k&l, "tE-Variant(s): also tel·e·o·log·ic /-'lä-jik/Function: adjectiveDate: 1798: exhibiting or relating to design or purpose especially in nature- tel·e·o·log·i·cal·ly /-ji-k(&-)lE/ adverb
There is something amazing in this world that guides people to one direction or another. Why did Wayne Gretzsky play hockey andMichael Jordan play basketball? Would each of them of been as prolific had that each been drawn to the other's sport? Sure their achievements are a testiment to their hard work and dedication, but...there is certainly something more. Is somebody actually 'a natural?'
Height is clearly an advantage in basketball...
yet this same advantage would be a distinct disadvantage in various other sports.
Great gurth is an advantage for linemen in american football or sumo wrestling in Japan, but these qualities are clearly not advantages in most other sports. Desire will only take an athlete so far.... It is unlikely that with all the hardwork in the world that Lance Armstrong could ever dunk on a regulation height rim....but he can ride a bike like no other.
that is enough for now
this is a discussion that could drag on forever
but the seed is planted
the basis of my idea is layed out
expand on it if you will
or dispell any of my misconceptions
do what you will
I best get back to work
next topic?
performance enhancement drugs?
(and I am not talking about Viagra)
who uses them?
is it still cheating even if those drugs are not banned?
can someone be competitive against the other atheletes if they are clean while the others use?
can we get two fields of athletes...
let the clean athletes compete and have the enhancement drug using atheletes go home?