Ingenuity > Science
There’s a narrative floating around high-performance sport that’s gaining too much traction—and frankly, it’s exhausting. It’s the idea that sport science is the solution. That more data, more tech, more equipment, and more testing will automatically create better athletes.
Don’t get me wrong—I am a sport science professional. I TEACH this at the university level. I believe in the value of evidence-based practices. I respect research. I use data. But let me be clear: this is not the answer.
Building athletes doesn’t happen in a lab surrounded by gadgets and glowing screens. It happens in a culture that supports development, not just performance metrics. It happens when the expectations are clear, the values are shared, and the path forward is visible and meaningful.
It happens under supervision & guidance.
It happens when a coach walks in calmly, grounded by experience, with an eye that sees potential instead of problems. It happens when that coach is on a mission—not chasing perfection, but cultivating progress. When they understand how to read a room, regulate energy, and earn trust.
Too often, we treat sport science like a magic pill. Like it’s the thing that was missing. But science is just a tool, not the foundation. The true foundation is human—culture, love, communication, and mutual respect.
I’ve watched young athletes transform not because we optimized every variable, but because we built a space where they felt valued and believed in. Where failure wasn’t feared, and excellence was expected—but nurtured with attentiveness.
This is where performance lives. Not in the testing protocol. Not in the force plate data. Not in the GPS metrics. Although useful, please don’t mistake them for the BEACON.
Performance lives in the environment.
In the consistency.
In the relationship.
In the energy of the room.
If we forget that, we’re just playing with toys in a lab—while the real work of athlete development passes us by.
With UBC Basketball (2000-2007), we trained on a gravel track and in a weight room shared by regular students. We ran stairs at Wreck beach while inhaling the fumes of the pot smokers walking down naked with their coolers. 2 National Titles. LFG.
With Wrestling Canada (2014-2018), we did conditioning circuits with a battle rope and kettlebells because we did not have access to a gym or facility. We ran stairs at the Coquitlam Crunch because we did not have fancy watt bikes that the girls in Calgary had. We Olympic lifted in the dirty BOG at SFU. 5 World medals. LFG.
My NLL guys - all playing for different teams, travelling only to play on weekends so conditioning took place in any open space we could find - the track, the turf, the slippery Mezz and a dusty squash court to play medicine ball games to keep the conditioning high. Result? Rookies ready to play at any given moment. LFG.
These are just a few of the examples of the environments I have worked in, and continue to work in. Yet, assisted in developing some of the biggest DAWGS in sport.
I think like a scientist, but I act like a coach.
Maybe a stopwatch, a jump mat, a big heart AND some INGINUITY works…
