Curious Cases

8. Be More Athlete


Listen Later

Are you more of a rhino or a kitten? More like a tortoise or a hare? Listener Ivy wants to know what makes a good athlete and so Hannah and Dara tackle the science of sport.

Our curious duo get to grips with the rigours of training tailored for endurance events vs those based on more explosive bursts of activity. They consider the contribution of genetics, fast vs slow twitch muscle fibres, the unique advantage of Michael Phelps's body proportions and whether butterfly really is the most ridiculous stroke in swimming.

And after a rigorous scientific analysis, Dara turns out to be ideally suited for…netball. Much to his surprise.

Contributors

Dr Polly McGuigan: University of Bath
Dr Mitch Lomax: University of Portsmouth
Professor Alun Williams: Manchester Metropolitan University
Dr Josephine Perry: Sports psychologist

Producer: Ilan Goodman

Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem
A BBC Studios Audio Production

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Curious CasesBy BBC Radio 4

  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8

4.8

709 ratings


More shows like Curious Cases

View all
In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,409 Listeners

From Our Own Correspondent by BBC Radio 4

From Our Own Correspondent

367 Listeners

Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,678 Listeners

Business Daily by BBC World Service

Business Daily

529 Listeners

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4 by BBC Radio 4

Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4

2,125 Listeners

More or Less: Behind the Stats by BBC Radio 4

More or Less: Behind the Stats

891 Listeners

World Business Report by BBC World Service

World Business Report

282 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

1,951 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,044 Listeners

Comedy of the Week by BBC Radio 4

Comedy of the Week

490 Listeners

The Life Scientific by BBC Radio 4

The Life Scientific

233 Listeners

BBC Inside Science by BBC Radio 4

BBC Inside Science

395 Listeners

No Such Thing As A Fish by No Such Thing As A Fish

No Such Thing As A Fish

4,836 Listeners

CrowdScience by BBC World Service

CrowdScience

474 Listeners

Newscast by BBC News

Newscast

651 Listeners

Evil Genius with Russell Kane by BBC Sounds

Evil Genius with Russell Kane

369 Listeners

Sliced Bread by BBC Radio 4

Sliced Bread

143 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

2,987 Listeners

Sport's Strangest Crimes by BBC Radio 5 Live

Sport's Strangest Crimes

69 Listeners

What The F*** Is Going On? with Mark Steel by WTF Productions

What The F*** Is Going On? with Mark Steel

94 Listeners

Uncanny by BBC Radio 4

Uncanny

660 Listeners

Dua Lipa: At Your Service by BBC Sounds

Dua Lipa: At Your Service

990 Listeners

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley by BBC Radio 4

Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley

520 Listeners

Powerplay by BBC Radio 5 Live

Powerplay

6 Listeners

Believe in Magic by BBC Sounds

Believe in Magic

606 Listeners

We Can Be Weirdos by Global

We Can Be Weirdos

201 Listeners

Uncharted with Hannah Fry by BBC Radio 4

Uncharted with Hannah Fry

113 Listeners

The Global Story by BBC World Service

The Global Story

163 Listeners

Miss Me? by BBC Sounds

Miss Me?

293 Listeners

The History Podcast by BBC Radio 4

The History Podcast

36 Listeners

Lunchbox Envy by Lunchbox Envy

Lunchbox Envy

25 Listeners