When it comes to forecasting whether someone is podium bound, there are many pieces to the puzzle

Elite sportsmen share a number of common traits, unsurprisingly including a liking for exercise, enjoying competition and growing up in a sporty family. But is it nature or nurture?

However, when it comes to forecasting whether someone is podium bound, there are many pieces to this puzzle.

Athletes come in all different shapes and sizes with some clearly better suited to certain sports so it’s important the right match is made at a young age.

This is why we often hear commentators use the phrase, ‘He didn’t even take up the sport until he was (whatever age)’ as it’s so uncommon for winners to have not been a child prodigy.

Access to quality coaching at an early age is vital but so often this is dependent upon location plus how much time and money parents can afford to put in. Hand in hand with this is an inbuilt desire to not just play, but to constantly improve.

The relative distribution of fast and slow twitch muscle fibres has a profound impact on how your body performs and therefore which sporting discipline you’re most suited to.

A high percentage of fast twitch fibres in the lower body are essential for any activity that requires explosive movement. An easy way to test this is a standing vertical jump with 60cms being a good score.

Nature or nurture?

Sportsmen have to be determined, goal-oriented and resilient in order to remain emotionally balanced when the proverbial hits the fan so chances are, they are also high achievers in other aspect of their life.

A number of studies have linked sporting ability and academic performance in kids.

Being a foodie could be a negative as, although an elite athlete may enjoy an occasional treat, in hard training periods food has to be seen as nothing more than fuel, to be constantly measured and monitored.

The final secret to success is no secret at all – as the Buttery Bros constantly remind us, ‘You gotta want it!’ Now, we’re not just talking about enjoying winning here, but rather a pathological need to never lose.

So, have you (or your kids) got what it takes?