Future Portrait of the Athletic Brain: Mechanistic Understanding of Human Sport Performance Via Animal Neurophysiology of Motor Behavior

Abstract

Sport performances are often showcases of skilled motor control. Efforts to understand the neural processes subserving such movements may teach us about general principles of behavior, similarly to how studies on neurological patients have guided early work in cognitive neuroscience. While investigations on non-human animal models offer valuable information on the neural dynamics of skilled motor control that is still difficult to obtain from humans, sport sciences have paid relatively little attention to these mechanisms. Similarly, knowledge emerging from the study of sport performance could inspire innovative experiments in animal neurophysiology, but the latter has been only partially applied. Here, we advocate that fostering interactions between these two seemingly distant fields, i.e., animal neurophysiology and sport sciences, may lead to mutual benefits. For instance, recording and manipulating the activity from neurons of behaving animals offer a unique viewpoint on the computations for motor control, with potentially untapped relevance for motor skills development in athletes. To stimulate such transdisciplinary dialog, in the present article, we also discuss steps for the reverse translation of sport sciences findings to animal models and the evaluation of comparability between animal models of a given sport and athletes. In the final section of the article, we envision that some approaches developed for animal neurophysiology could translate to sport sciences anytime soon (e.g., advanced tracking methods) or in the future (e.g., novel brain stimulation techniques) and could be used to monitor and manipulate motor skills, with implications for human performance extending well beyond sport.

Effect of different sport environments on proactive and reactive motor inhibition: A study on open- and closed-skilled athletes via mouse-tracking procedure

“…In modern society, humans of all genders and ages engage deeply in sport activity, a practice grounded in the innate human capacity for play ( Nesti, 2016 ). Sport environments provide a joyful source of entertainment, but also engender powerful perceptual-cognitive-motor experiences that promote the development of new skills and behavioral changes ( Quarta et al, 2020 ).…”

“…The hypothesis that sport categories with different characteristics may differently influence cognitive functions of an individual is based on emergent concepts in neuroscience, including embodied cognition theories. According to these theories, cognition and perception features are forged by the kinds of experience that come from having a body interacting dynamically with the environment ( Varela et al, 2016 ; Quarta et al, 2020 ).…”

Efficiency in Kinesiology: Innovative Approaches in Enhancing Motor Skills for Athletic Performance

“…In recent years, sport science research has substantiated the efficacy of certain modalities as the paramount outline for assessing, enhancing, and even prognosticating athletic performance [ 1 , 2 ]. These methodologies encompassed both bio-motor (e.g., power development) and related technical components (e.g., vertical jump during a basketball shoot).…”

Efficiency in Kinesiology: Innovative Approaches in Enhancing Motor Skills for Athletic Performance

“…In recent years, sport science research has substantiated the efficacy of certain modalities as the paramount outline for assessing, enhancing, and even prognosticating athletic performance [1,2]. These methodologies encompassed both bio-motor (e.g., power development) and related technical components (e.g., vertical jump during a basketball shoot).…”