Product Review

Most coaches are reluctant to study sport mechanics; from experience they equate it with boring texts loaded with formulas, calculations, and scientific terminology. That’s not the case with Sport Mechanics for Coaches. This updated third edition provides an introductory look at the mechanics of sport in a manner that’s understandable and usable for the novices in the field.

Author Brendan Burkett—Paralympic gold medalist and world-record holder—pours his love of sport and his expertise as an award-winning engineer and biomechanics professor into this enhanced, revised, and reformatted text. Divided into three parts covering the fundamentals of sport mechanics, mechanical principles, and application of the knowledge to sport contexts, this text highlights real-life sporting achievements and the mechanics behind them. Various pedagogical aids including review questions and practical activities are featured, allowing students and coaches to gauge their understanding of key concepts chapter by chapter.

Since the previous edition was published, technological advancements have expanded the coach’s and athlete’s toolbox. Sport Mechanics for Coaches includes nearly 150 illustrations and photos and all-new content to help readers understand and incorporate technology and state-of-the-art sport equipment to enhance training, identify errors in technique, and improve performance.

Coaches, students, and athletes with a curiosity about how and why things work in the world of sport and a desire to improve performance will find Sport Mechanics for Coaches refreshingly easy to read, comprehend, and put into practice.