By: Teresa Gong

The improvements seen in various sports over the years, particularly darts, highlight the factors that contribute to athletes’ continuous improvement from one generation to the next.

Advancements in equipment and technology can play a significant role in improving athletes’ performance. In darts, for instance, changes in dart design and board construction have made the game more accurate.

Sports have evolved to provide tougher challenges to athletes. In archery and bowling, for example, changes in distance or conditions (such as oil patterns on bowling lanes) have raised the bar for achieving high scores.

As sports gain popularity and offer better financial incentives, more individuals with high innate ability are attracted to the game. The growth in the number of players and the expansion of professional leagues, like the W.N.B.A. and P.D.C. World Darts Championship, have contributed to higher skill levels among athletes.

According to the New York Times, roughly 40 to 70 people consider themselves full-time darts players on the P.D.C. tour. But of the top 50 players in the world rankings, only two are from outside of Europe, and just 19 are from outside of Britain or Ireland.

Improved training methods and athletes’ ability to adjust their movements based on feedback during performance (so-called closed loop movement), contribute to enhanced skills and consistency.

While athletes have consistently improved their skills and performance across generations, there are multiple factors at play, including equipment, conditions, player pool expansion, and training methods. However, we may eventually reach a point of diminishing returns, where further improvement becomes more challenging to achieve.