About the Author

A two-time Olympian and a graduate of Oxford University, Matthew Syed is a columnist for The Times (London), a commentator for the BBC, and a recipient of the British Press Award for Sports Journalist of the Year, and was named British Sports Feature Writer of the Year by the Sports Journalists' Association.

Reviews

"Sport is often used as an analogy for business, education, and personal relationships. In this insightful and entertaining book, Matthew Syed takes us a step deeper into the world of sports, showing us how much we can learn about our own behavior." -- Dan Ariely, New York Times bestselling author of Predictably Irrational"Everything Matthew Syed writes is worth reading." -- Lynne Truss, bestselling author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves"The most important book I've read over the past six months is Matthew Syed's Bounce." -- Peter Orszag"A cutting edge dissection--and ultimate destruction--of the myth of innate talent in the pursuit of excellence. Syed synthesizes his evidence with the precision of an academic, writes with the fluidity of a journalist, and persuades with the drive of a sportsman. Read this book now--before its too late. There are no excuses!" -- Mark Thomas, Professor of Evolutionary Genetics, University College London"Intellectually stimulating and hugely enjoyable at a stroke. . . . Challenged some of my most cherished beliefs about life and success." -- Jonathan Edwards, Olympic Gold Medal Winner in the Triple Jump"Compelling and, at times, exhilarating--Bounce explains high achievement in sport, business, and beyond." -- Michael Sherwood, Chief Executive, Goldman Sachs International"Cogent discussions of the neuroscience of competition, including the placebo effect of irrational optimist, self-doubt, and superstitions, all lend credence to a compelling narrative; readers who gobbled up Freakonomics and Predictably Irrational will flock to this one." -- Publishers Weekly"Philosophical and thought-provoking." -- BookPage