Gene ACTN3 is better predictor for success in power and speed sports than race is... sort-of

Slate - White Men Can't Jump?

An article that contains some analysis and some new information, but mostly seeks to establish that race or racial background is not as accurate as genes are in predicting power and speed performance. The test is for a gene ACTN3 that could be either RR, RX, or XX. The more R, the higher correlation in excelling in sport competition that values power and speed. Roughly, African-Americans have a frequency of RR at .6, and European whites have .36. The problem is that in some sports, say, NBA basketball, African-Americans represent roughly 80% of the playing time and demographic, showing they are over-represented based on gene frequency averages. The same could go for Olympic sprinters, almost all of whom are west African in descent. There are confounding factors here that could be related to culture, upbringing, perceived opportunities, etc. The conclusion is that racial categories are too crude to explain sporting success, and that genes should be considered one of the causal factors instead.