should be used.
Speed and Strength
Why is Cristiano Ronaldo so fast? How does Dani Alves cover so much of the pitch in 90 minutes? What were they feeding Romelu Lukaku back in Belgium for him to grow into the 6’3″, 94-kilogram sports specimen he is today? If you were a coach and could find the answers, imagine the team you could create.
Well…imagine no more. This is exactly what DNA testing aims to solve.
In the case of Ronaldo and Lukaku, it’s likely genetic tests would reveal they possess the ACTN3 gene. This gene encodes for α-actinin-3—a protein that has been linked to greater baseline strength and an increase in fast-twitch muscle fibres.
Why is this important to football? Research published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine took 60 elite-level footballers and compared their genotypes to 52 elite endurance athletes and 123 sedentary individuals only to find, “Although there are notable exceptions, elite soccer players tend to have the sprint/power ACTN3 genotype.”
If you’re the chief scout at a youth academy and have the ability to test this in all players who enter the club’s development programme, it’s possible you could build a team that could outrun and outmuscle any team that stands across the centre circle from them.
JAVIER SORIANO/Getty Images
But what happens if it’s 0-0 and heading into extra time? It’s likely your manager will be turning to you to ask why the fastest, strongest and most powerful team ever assembled is now wilting. As the players struggle to get up and down the pitch, he wants to know why it looks like they have lead weights in their boots and why their fatigued physiques look like injuries waiting to happen.
The answer? You need to find the ACE I allele genetic marker.
Earlier this season, the Mirror published an article that detailed the amount of ground covered by each Premier League team. In some surprising results, statistics showed Manchester United covered the least ground of any team in the top flight with a mere 3,708.9 kilometres—nearly 500 kilometres less than the team who covered the most ground, Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.
The headline read, “Lazy Man United?” But were they lazy? Demotivated? Maybe they were just adjusting to life under Jose Mourinho. Or maybe the answer was a lack of ACE I allele genes in the team.
That is a gene that researchers from the Department of Molecular and Clinical Genetics at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Australia found could be a “genetic marker associated with athletic excellence.” After comparing 64 national rowers with a “normal population,” they found rowers had an “excess of the ACE I allele genotype,” which could be an “underlying mechanism relating to a healthier cardiovascular system.”
Basically, those players with the ACE I allele genotype may have been gifted with superior hearts and lungs, which explains why they still look fresh and fast as the final whistle approaches.
It’s no secret that Daniel Sturridge—the Liverpool player who thrills and frustrates in equal measures—is one of the Premier League’s most injury-plagued players. From his hamstring to his ankle to his knee, there’s not many limbs that haven’t been troubled by pain at some point. In fact, according to Fox Sports at the start of the season: “During his 1121 days at Anfield, Sturridge has missed 614 with injury. That means he’s missed 54.8 per cent of all Reds matches since joining the club. The striker has suffered a total of 18 injuries in that time, with his thigh the most troublesome problem—he has injured his thigh on seven different occasions.”
Scott Heavey/Getty Images
Could genetic testing have saved his career?
Research published by the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine shows it may have, or soon could change the careers of others, as scientists stated: “The potential to use genetic testing to reduce sports injuries is rapidly increasing.” Specifically, they found: “The COL1A1 gene encodes the alpha chain of type I collagen, the major protein component of all tendons and ligaments.”
Why would it be so important for Klopp to understand this? Because 