Michaels Phelps. 208 cm wingspan. Tiger Woods. Incredible muscle control. Jennie Finch. Strong arms.

At first glance, it seems that every famous professional athlete exhibits some physical advantage that makes them better at their sport than the average person. But just how much do physical attributes change a player’s performance within a sport?

The following sports each demonstrate varying levels of benefits as a result a specific body type. Advantages range from increased upper body strength in swimming to the less noticeable advantage of wrist strength and agility in tennis.

Swimming:

Senior Andrew Yadegar has a simple way to evaluate how someone will perform in swimming.

“It essentially depends on how big you are,” Yadegar said. “But it isn’t the end all be all of swimming.”

As much as Yadegar wants to believe this simple answer, he recognizes that there is a more important factor: being able to use one’s strength effectively.

“It’s obvious, but it needs to be reiterated,” Yadegar said. “You could be able to bench the most on the team and be the slowest in the pool.”

Although strength is important in swimming, being in the water means that a swimmer must utilize their strength effectively to move quickly.

“The only way to get that efficient is through [practice],” Yadegar said. “So that’s the most important part.”

The universal appeal of swimming rests in its ability to accommodate nearly everyone. However, the ability of effectively using body strength in swimming will come to a swimmer’s advantage.

Softball:

According to junior Sarah Robinson, who is the catcher on the varsity softball team, arm strength, accurate hand-eye coordination and effective speed are crucial to winning a softball game.

However, beneficial characteristics for infield and outfield vary. For outfielders, a strong arm is useful when it comes to catching the ball and throwing the ball back for quick outs. For infielders, being agile is crucial for reaching the base as fast as possible or stopping a well-hit ball.

Tennis:

The importance of physical attributes for sports performance is perhaps overlooked most frequently in a sport like tennis, where fast-paced games lead people to believe that leg strength and endurance are the most important parts of the sport.

However, sophomore Neil Palleti says that the physical attributes that are commonly believed to play a large role in determining a player’s success in tennis have little merit.

“Especially for tennis, it is one of the sports that require a lot of agility. It’s not strength or endurance, it’s just quickness,” Palleti said.

Perhaps tennis players may not need excessive strength in their legs, but don’t they need arm strength at the very least? Isn’t swinging a racket the core of playing tennis? It is, but the power from a swing doesn’t come from the arm alone.

“I’ve seen weak people hit very hard, so it’s not about strength,” Palleti said. “It’s more about using your whole body.”

In fact, Palleti says that the general conditioning of the body is needed to maintain optimal performance.

Yet, as important as physical attributes are, Palleti acknowledges that training still makes the best tennis players.

“Training and dedication can definitely get you up high, even without inherent physical benefits,” Palleti said. “It’s going to be harder, but I’ve seen players who don’t have these advantages and still end up really good players.”

Golf:

According to senior Hershey Sriraman, the girls golf captain, the use of upper body strength and flexibility skills can significantly help a golf player. During plays, the high twist of the torso is crucial to having an effective swing.

“If you’re really flexible and have upper body strength, it would definitely help you drive your ball very far, about 200 to 250 yards, which could really benefit if you are playing a really long and hard course,” Sriraman said.

Sriraman has been practicing golf for several years. After putting in hours worth of effort every day, she ended up tearing both of her menisci. These are important to help a player bend down, do chip shots and try to get the ball out of the bunker during a game. The flexibility of the knees are significant in the outcome of a player’s swing. Even though she has these injuries, they do not stop her from pursuing her passion for golf.