Would you consider a sport where, due to random genetics, only 7% of the population could get really good at it?

I really don't think kids pick sports based on this criteria, but good try

instead they thinK:

do I like the sport

do other kids I know play the sport

is it offered at my school etc

Next

Height is more of a factor in volleyball than basketball and genetics play an important role in many other sports.

Most people in the NBA are not 6’8. And definitely not in other leagues (NCAA, G League, Euro League, etc).

And what’s your definition of ‘really good’?

I’d argue track/running if the most genetically limiting sport.

Here’s why:

To be ‘really good’ - like Olympics good, you have to be born in the 99.99% level talent.

Other sports have a skill component that offsets the need for athleticism. For example, a guy like Chris Paul is 5’11 and not a top notch athlete. He would never make it track. But he can work on his skill.

Tom Brady may have average athleticism even when compared to non athletes, he would never make it in track.

If you want to become really skilled at throwing the football, dribbling, or shooting, you can do those things all day which is why you see people like Gilbert Arenas shoot 1000x per day. There is no opportunity to train for track all day. Your body will break down. So you are limited by what you start with.

Talk bs much?

Swimming

why are so many people rushing to my post in order to do their "well actually..." BS, please if you don't have any idea of what I'm talking about just don't reply.

Track also only has room for 1-2 “pros” per event while other sports have room for 100s or 1000s.

Well if you don't like the responses, stop posting bs.

Would I do a sport I know I can never be truly great at?

Obviously, yes. None of us on this board will ever break 13:00 in the 5000m, yet we are still runners. So that answers your question.

But after all, for 99.9% of us who do sports, we are not doing it because we plan to "go pro." I also didn't encourage all my kids to do sports because of money or "scholarships."

The real reason to do a sport is a combination of the following:

• how it makes you feel (happy? strong? confident?)
  
• how it reshapes your body (stronger? healthier? faster?)
  
• who you get to spend your day with (teammates? friends?)
  
• where you get to spend your time (nature? outdoors? traveling? cool venues?)
  
• the habits it gives you (dedication? hard work? grit?)
  
• the fun and love of the game (originally, sports were not supposed to be "jobs", right?)
  

Being good at skill-based sports is also genetics, even if there's not a stereotypical build.

The coordination, spacial awareness, etc. required to be a pro soccer player for example are all hugely influenced by genetics.

Think about your question if it were applied to other areas of life:

• Would you consider a relationship where, due to randomness, you only had a 7% chance of finding the perfect girl?
• Would you eat a food where, due to random luck, you only had a 7% chance of getting the best chef and best ingredients ever?
• Would you watch a movie where, due to random luck, there was only a 7% chance it was going to be your favorite movie?
  

Of course. Not everything has to be "perfect" in order for it to be great, fun, satisfying, healthy, or at the very, very least, better than nothing.

My primary sport is vigorous lovemaking. I can assure you I have all the genetic advantages, but I work hard to perfect my craft. My handiwork speaks for itself.

You were going strong until you went all touchy-feely with your bullet points. If a kid doesn’t want to compete, then sports aren’t for him.

But unless you are making a ton of money (or at least more than from a regular job), then why are you a runner?

If you are not someone like Jakob or Noah Lyles or Sydeny, it can't be for the big paychecks, so it has to be for one of the "touchy-feely reasons" I listed.

Soccer is by far the easiest sport to go pro, at least for males. There are round 130,000 pro male soccer players worldwide according to FIFA Professional Football Report 2023.

Weighted by number of practitioners, soccer remains fairly easy to turn pro compared to other global sports like badminton, which have similar numbers of practitioners but far less pro players. There might obviously be niche sports like sumo etc. with a higher pro/amateur ratio.

I would argue that running (100m up to 5000m) is the hardest sport to turn pro. Or maybe chess.

Would you consider a job where based on random genetics only 7% of the population could do it even if they tried really hard?

Choosing to do any sport soley for the purpose of doing it professionally is a waste of time and effort. Soccer? 95% can play at the elite level? Do you really believe that if I watch my eight year old niece's and five year old nephew's soccer games 95% of those kids will be able to play professionally? Zero percent of the kids who played with my kids when they were little have played professionally. One of them got a partial college scholarship.

Hockey is the big "aspirational" sport for parents where I live. Loads of them are up at 4:00 AM hauling their 8-10 year old kids to hockey practice because that's the only time of day when youth leagues can get time on the ice and spending gobs of money and time taking their kids to weekend out of town tournaments. When you ask them why the answer is almost always they're hoping their kids get a college scholarship or MAYBE a professional contract. Almost none do. If you're going to consider doing a sport seriously the only good reason to do it is because you like the sport and maybe expect to make friends with others who do too.

Made up statistic.

What exactly is 99.99% level talent?

How exactly is that measured?

And how is that any different than any other sport?

Wanting to be really good at a sport is not on your list. If only kids that can make a ton of money should compete, there would be empty fields, gyms and pools.

I can’t imagine a kid with decent potential making a decision based on that list as to whether to compete seriously. High school athletes don’t need to be babied like that.