Nature vs. Nuture

This week, the athletes of In the Arena have been given a questionnaire dealing with Nature v. Nurture in the development of expertise. I'm very interested to see how the answers of my fellow athletes compare to the ones that I've given. My answers are as follows:

1. What is the athletic background of your parents and family?
My parents and siblings are, and have always been, pretty active people. My father was a collegiate lacrosse player and still runs and relishes physical labor (moving boulders, landscaping etc.). My mother was a majorette (baton twirler) in college who took up running at the age of 40 and runs regularly. My brother and sister were very athletic growing up, playing soccer, swimming and running. They both participated in sports (Nordic skiing and rowing) in college and continue to be active.

2. When did you begin participating in your sport?
While I did my first triathlon in 1998, I didn't participate regularly in triathlon until 2004. From the age of 7, I was a competitive swimmer and ran competitively throughout middle and high school. However, adding the bike and doing all three sports in a row took a few years.

3. What were your early experiences with sport like?

My family was very supportive of my participation in sport, taking me to whatever games or meets that I had. It was a no-pressure situation, as they were more concerned that I enjoyed myself than with victory. I also grew up in a small town, where a kid could compete in many different sports and not worry about focusing on one sport. It was also easy to be successful in your sport (the classic “big fish, small pond” syndrome).

4. How instrumental were parents and coaches in the early part of your development as an athlete?

I would say that my parents and coaches were more important in my development in the role of emotional supporters than technical supporters. By the time that I started triathlon, the lessons of dedication and persistence had long been instilled in me.

5. How were you introduced to your sport and how many other sports did you seriously participate in?
While I knew vaguely of triathlon as a result of televised Ironman Hawaii, I decided that I would try a triathlon in high school, as I could already swim and run. My father drove with me from Upstate NY to Massachusetts in order to participate, as there were no races closer to our home. Although I competed in swimming in college, I wasn't ever part of a “serious” swimming program, so I would say that triathlon is the first sport in which I have participated seriously.

6. Is your success a product of nature or nurture?

Although nature plays a role in my ability to train and compete at a high level, I believe that nurture is 90% of the reason why I am successful. I don’t have the “ideal” build for the sport, but my stubborn persistence has proven to outweigh my natural limitations.

7. Are you an expert in your field? (by your own definition)
I feel that I will never be an expert in my field, as the sport is always evolving. I have picked up quite a bit along the way, but I still have so much left to learn!