Planet Rugby Forum

So as the cliché goes, athletes are dumb shits, or more aptly expressed: high testosterone=lower IQ etc etc... you'll have noticed top athletes are indeed often limited verbally, in interviews and what not. Conversely, some of the more articulate speakers are often not the best athletes or amongst the very best players..

Who are some of the exception athletes you can think of that have come across as intelligent, in wtvr sport ?

Mike Brown

Gavin Henson

Dork Lard wrote:So as the cliché goes, athletes are dumb shits, or more aptly expressed: high testosterone=lower IQ etc etc... you'll have noticed top athletes are indeed often limited verbally, in interviews and what not. Conversely, some of the more articulate speakers are often not the best athletes or amongst the very best players..

Who are some of the exception athletes you can think of that have come across as intelligent, in wtvr sport ?

Coming across as intelligent on TV does not mean you are. Laura Muir has just won bronze and silver at the World Indoors, and whilst she does not come across as thick, she does not sound like a rocker scientist when interviewed. Yet she has managed to be a top class athlete while studying to be a vet and is missing the Commonwealth Games for her final exams.

I am sure there are a shed more who are more academically gifted.

.........

Why am I responding to this?

Clappy clapperson is meant to be pretty smart isn't he?

To be fair to many athletes, the people doing the interviewing ask questions ranging from 'already answered the question with the question' to 'completely inane'.

CGW's "Yeah, Definitely!" segment showed that they always get closed questions with obvious responses (but it seems they've taken them all down from youtube )

... found a supercut on fb: https://www.facebook.com/CrowdGoesWild/ ... 415448764/

Robbie Diack.

Nieghorn wrote:To be fair to many athletes, the people doing the interviewing ask questions ranging from 'already answered the question with the question' to 'completely inane'.

CGW's "Yeah, Definitely!" segment showed that they always get closed questions with obvious responses (but it seems they've taken them all down from youtube )

... found a supercut on fb: https://www.facebook.com/CrowdGoesWild/ ... 415448764/

That was a great post Nieg. Now how do you feel that post will received over the life of this thread? Do you think your fans understand how hard you work to come up with that?

Nieghorn wrote:To be fair to many athletes, the people doing the interviewing ask questions ranging from 'already answered the question with the question' to 'completely inane'.

CGW's "Yeah, Definitely!" segment showed that they always get closed questions with obvious responses (but it seems they've taken them all down from youtube )

... found a supercut on fb: https://www.facebook.com/CrowdGoesWild/ ... 415448764/

There is another phrase that sportsmen always seem to say, across lots of different sports, that I don't think I have ever heard anyone say in everyday conversation, and that is starting an answer with the words; 'for sure...'

Deadtigers wrote:

Nieghorn wrote:To be fair to many athletes, the people doing the interviewing ask questions ranging from 'already answered the question with the question' to 'completely inane'.

CGW's "Yeah, Definitely!" segment showed that they always get closed questions with obvious responses (but it seems they've taken them all down from youtube )

... found a supercut on fb: https://www.facebook.com/CrowdGoesWild/ ... 415448764/

That was a great post Nieg. Now how do you feel that post will received over the life of this thread? Do you think your fans understand how hard you work to come up with that?

Yah, nah, definitely.

Chips wrote:

Nieghorn wrote:To be fair to many athletes, the people doing the interviewing ask questions ranging from 'already answered the question with the question' to 'completely inane'.

CGW's "Yeah, Definitely!" segment showed that they always get closed questions with obvious responses (but it seems they've taken them all down from youtube )

... found a supercut on fb: https://www.facebook.com/CrowdGoesWild/ ... 415448764/

There is another phrase that sportsmen always seem to say, across lots of different sports, that I don't think I have ever heard anyone say in everyday conversation, and that is starting an answer with the words; 'for sure...'

Ice hockey it's "you know" ... which I think is more of a time filler while he collects his thoughts. But while other people of his generation would chuck in "like" it's been a hockey thing for years to drop "you know" throughout an interview.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDJC8yerHko

This may be a huge generalization, but do you think that it's often the 'role players' or 'journeymen' who tend to be the most intelligent? They've had to work harder and smarter, typically, to get where they are and being on the cusp of 'making it' were more likely to have an education/profession to pursue just in case they didn't?

Nieghorn wrote:This may be a huge generalization, but do you think that it's often the 'role players' or 'journeymen' who tend to be the most intelligent? They've had to work harder and smarter, typically, to get where they are and being on the cusp of 'making it' were more likely to have an education/profession to pursue just in case they didn't?

Absolutely. They often make the best coaches as well as they have had to think harder about the game rather than it all coming easy and naturally to them.

okay my mistake for making this thread on here I suppose.

Thanks Nieg for your good will, yes I'm sure the role players are the smarter ones, well spotted.
For example if I picked RU and France recently, the guy who's come across as the smartest was Clermont hooker Benjamin Kayser, and he was also not surprisingly one of the least athletic selected players from that entire PSA period, and one of the least remarkable ones. Definitely the consistent more clever role player...but there's room in RU for the hardworking type that isn't blessed with incredible athleticism where it's less common in for eg basketball I'd say where explosiveness/athletic ability will practically guarantee you a spot. There have been clever bball players, but I mean actually intelligent, not just high basketball/Rugby/soccer IQ but, straight-up high IQ.

Chips right, the top coaches are very often completely underwhelming unremarkable players, in any pro sport.

Fourie Du Preez

Michael Johnson might not be an intellectual but he is a mature and intelligent commentator and successful business man - as well as having been an amazing 200 and 400m runner.

Anyone who is funny, like Marc Ellis.

I'm actually surprised how hard it is to think up some names for intelligent athletes.

I think the problem is that anyone who is obviously intelligent (team captains like Cameron Smith, Richie McCaw ect) are under such strict instructions to not rock the boat that it is impossible for them to comment on anything interesting. Sponsors are so terrified at offence being caused that these guys can't say anything - they are effectively politicians.

J Man wrote:I'm actually surprised how hard it is to think up some names for intelligent athletes.

I think the problem is that anyone who is obviously intelligent (team captains like Cameron Smith, Richie McCaw ect) are under such strict instructions to not rock the boat that it is impossible for them to comment on anything interesting. Sponsors are so terrified at offence being caused that these guys can't say anything - they are effectively politicians.

Richie doesn’t have a controversial bone in his (hot) body anyway. He was the perfect Rugby Robot captain for sponsors.

Any Australian.

Any NFL Quarterback who makes a good fist of it. A lot of detail to remember quickly and under pressure.

Felipe Contepomi

naki wrote:

J Man wrote:I'm actually surprised how hard it is to think up some names for intelligent athletes.

I think the problem is that anyone who is obviously intelligent (team captains like Cameron Smith, Richie McCaw ect) are under such strict instructions to not rock the boat that it is impossible for them to comment on anything interesting. Sponsors are so terrified at offence being caused that these guys can't say anything - they are effectively politicians.

Richie doesn’t have a controversial bone in his (hot) body anyway. He was the perfect Rugby Robot captain for sponsors.

A genius. A Rhodes Scholar had it not been for his successful rugby playing career.

Plato'sCave wrote:

Hallam Amos is also towards the end of his medical degree too. I have it in my head there is a third (recent/current) Welsh international rugby player who is also a medic, but may be mistaken.

Dork Lard wrote: Definitely the consistent more clever role player...but there's room in RU for the hardworking type that isn't blessed with incredible athleticism where it's less common in for eg basketball I'd say where explosiveness/athletic ability will practically guarantee you a spot. There have been clever bball players, but I mean actually intelligent, not just high basketball/Rugby/soccer IQ but, straight-up high IQ.

Growing up, being a devotee of the NBA and NFL, I was always interested which of them actually got through uni without struggling. Probably most, but there were always stories of the rampant boosters and coaches doing whatever to keep their best athletes in 'The Program' (the film by that name a stark look at it).

David Robinson and Grant Hill were two who went four years at school and seem very intelligent.

John Amaechi is now a psychologist and has some great things to say about life and sport: https://edition.cnn.com/2018/01/26/spor ... index.html

https://soundcloud.com/your-brain-on-sp ... nba-career

Jonathan Webb is a surgeon in Bristol - quite a good England fullback in his day.

c69 wrote:How are you measuring intellect?

The Gavin Henson metric.

LandOTurk wrote:

Plato'sCave wrote:

Hallam Amos is also towards the end of his medical degree too. I have it in my head there is a third (recent/current) Welsh international rugby player who is also a medic, but may be mistaken.

I only know of Roberts, Amos and JPR

Isn't Brendan Venter a doc as well? Castaignede has an engineering degree (not sure if he does anything with it).

WoodlandsRFC wrote:

c69 wrote:How are you measuring intellect?

The Gavin Henson metric.

Nieghorn wrote:Isn't Brendan Venter a doc as well? Castaignede has an engineering degree (not sure if he does anything with it).

Venter is a practising GP. Jannie du Plessis has trained to become a full time doctor after his Rugby career finishes.

I always hated how they interview sprinters, 2 minutes after a 100 meters and go Deadtigers what you think after you slow start? or something that requires thought that the guy just doesn't have.

Deadtigers wrote:I always hated how they interview sprinters, 2 minutes after a 100 meters and go Deadtigers what you think after you slow start? or something that requires thought that the guy just doesn't have.

Sports interviews are terrible in that sense - "What was going through your head in that 2 second window 10 minutes ago when you were probably acting entirely on instinct/trained response and can't actually remember precisely what you were thinking?".

Jay Cee Gee wrote:

Deadtigers wrote:I always hated how they interview sprinters, 2 minutes after a 100 meters and go Deadtigers what you think after you slow start? or something that requires thought that the guy just doesn't have.

Sports interviews are terrible in that sense - "What was going through your head in that 2 second window 10 minutes ago when you were probably acting entirely on instinct/trained response and can't actually remember precisely what you were thinking?".

Well first JC, I want to take a minute and give all blessings to God. only through him can we be successful...

Oscar Pistorius