Sportspeople

I watched Wayne Rooney the other night. Absolutely brilliant, he can read the football field so well, he can see/tell what others are doing, work out what they are likely to do so well. His brain must be amazing. He must be brilliant, superbly intelligent.
I watched David Beckham the other year. Absolutely brilliant, he can read the football field so well, he can see/tell what others are doing, work out what they are likely to do so well. His brain must be amazing. He must be brilliant, superbly intelligent.
I listened to Mohamed Ali the other night. Absolutely brilliant, he could read his opponent so well, , work out what they are likely to do so well. His brain must be amazing. He must be brilliant, superbly intelligent.
Hang on a minute, ok the last guy was one hell of a talker people accept that he must have been intelligent.
Being good at a sport means that you have to be dedicated, thoughtful, able to plan and see opportunities as well as having the ‘biology’ to deliver physically. But we are surprised when a good sportsperson is also brilliant academically, a brilliant reader..
But what if all sportspeople had to play their sport in size 8 shoes? Would the same people be at the top of their sport?