Sports and ADHD: Is There a Connection?
From baseball and basketball to judo and gymnastics, the sports world is filled with elite athletes who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and have mastered their respective sports. See the article : College Football Playoff expansion: Board agrees to 12-team field with goal of implementing as soon as possible.
Research suggests, in fact, that ADHD may be more common in elite athletes than in the general population; up to 8% of athletes have the condition compared to 2% to 7% of the general population.1
Every one of the athletes on this list has ADHD, whether diagnosed in childhood, in the middle of their professional career, or years after retiring from the sport. Many say ADHD gives them an edge, while others say sports have given them a healthy outlet for their symptoms. Who would you add to this list?
1 Han, D. H., McDuff, D., Thompson, D., Hitchcock, M. E., Reardon, C. L., & Hainline, B. (2019). Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in elite athletes: a narrative review. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 53(12), 741–745. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2019-100713
From baseball and basketball to judo and gymnastics, the sports world is filled with elite athletes who have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and have mastered their respective sports.
Simone Biles
Research suggests, in fact, that ADHD may be more common in elite athletes than in the general population; up to 8% of athletes have the condition compared to 2% to 7% of the general population.1
Gymnast
Every one of the athletes on this list has ADHD, whether diagnosed in childhood, in the middle of their professional career, or years after retiring from the sport. Many say ADHD gives them an edge, while others say sports have given them a healthy outlet for their symptoms. Who would you add to this list?
1 Han, D. H., McDuff, D., Thompson, D., Hitchcock, M. E., Reardon, C. L., & Hainline, B. (2019). Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in elite athletes: a narrative review. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 53(12), 741–745. Read also : 10 video games that have exceeded their welcome. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2019-100713
Gymnast
Zach Wilson
Simone Biles is the most decorated American gymnast in history, with 32 world championship medals and seven Olympic medals. Read also : 10 Best Video Games Set During The Victorian Era. In 2022, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, becoming the youngest person to receive the nation’s highest civilian honor.
Football Player
Biles spoke out about his ADHD diagnosis in 2016, after Russian hackers exposed sensitive medical information about his Ritalin use. “Having ADHD and taking medication for it is nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to be afraid of letting people know,” he tweeted at the time.
Image by Fernando Frazão/Agência Brasil (CC BY 2.0)
Simone Biles is the most decorated American gymnast in history, with 32 world championship medals and seven Olympic medals. In 2022, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, becoming the youngest person to receive the nation’s highest civilian honor.
Michael Phelps
Biles spoke out about his ADHD diagnosis in 2016, after Russian hackers exposed sensitive medical information about his Ritalin use. “Having ADHD and taking medication for it is nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to be afraid of letting people know,” he tweeted at the time.
Swimmer
Image by Fernando Frazão/Agência Brasil (CC BY 2.0)
Football player
Zach Wilson, who played college football at Brigham Young University, was selected second overall by the New York Jets in the 2021 NFL Draft. Wilson was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and says symptoms of distraction and missing of attention have never interfered with his passion and focus on football. “I try really hard, but it’s a struggle for me because of attention deficit,” Wilson told the Deseret News of college. “When it comes to football, I can do it all day.”
Terry Bradshaw
Wilson is the nephew of David Neeleman, the founder of JetBlue Airways who is outspoken about his own ADHD.
Football Player
Image/screenshot of the Atlanta Falcons (video uploaded to YouTube under CC BY license)
Zach Wilson, who played college football at Brigham Young University, was selected second overall by the New York Jets in the 2021 NFL Draft. Wilson was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and says symptoms of distraction and missing of attention have never interfered with his passion and focus on football. “I try really hard, but it’s a struggle for me because of attention deficit,” Wilson told the Deseret News of college. “When it comes to football, I can do it all day.”
Wilson is the nephew of David Neeleman, the founder of JetBlue Airways who is outspoken about his own ADHD.
Image/screenshot of the Atlanta Falcons (video uploaded to YouTube under CC BY license)
Kevin Garnett
Swimmer
Basketball Player
With a total of 28 Olympic medals, Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time.
Phelps, who was diagnosed with ADHD as a child, recalls “constantly bouncing off walls.” “All anyone knew, particularly my mom, my sisters, and my coaches, was that I had all this energy and could bleed a lot playing sports: baseball, football, lacrosse, swimming, you name it,” he wrote. his book, No Limits: The Will to Succeed. (# Commissions earned)
Image by Agência Brasil Fotografias (CC BY 2.0)
With a total of 28 Olympic medals, Michael Phelps is the most decorated Olympian of all time.
Michelle Carter
Phelps, who was diagnosed with ADHD as a child, recalls “constantly bouncing off walls.” “All anyone knew, particularly my mom, my sisters, and my coaches, was that I had all this energy and could bleed a lot playing sports: baseball, football, lacrosse, swimming, you name it,” he wrote. his book, No Limits: The Will to Succeed. (# Commissions earned)
Shot Putter
Image by Agência Brasil Fotografias (CC BY 2.0)
Football player
An NFL legend, broadcaster and entertainer, Terry Bradshaw was diagnosed with ADHD later in life, long after his playing career ended in the early ’80s. He described his life with undiagnosed ADHD, from school problems to impulse purchases, in his 2001 book, It’s Only a Game. (# Commissions earned)
“I really wish I had been tested [for ADHD] when I was a kid so I could reach my academic potential,” he wrote. “But they didn’t put me to the test, I fought and in football I found my answers.”
Molly Seidel
Image from The ASI Show (CC BY 2.0)
Long-Distance Runner
[Read: How to help young athletes]
An NFL legend, broadcaster and entertainer, Terry Bradshaw was diagnosed with ADHD later in life, long after his playing career ended in the early ’80s. He described his life with undiagnosed ADHD, from school problems to impulse purchases, in his 2001 book, It’s Only a Game. (# Commissions earned)
“I really wish I had been tested [for ADHD] when I was a kid so I could reach my academic potential,” he wrote. “But they didn’t put me to the test, I fought and in football I found my answers.”
Image from The ASI Show (CC BY 2.0)
Justin Gatlin
[Read: How to help young athletes]
Sprinter
Basketball player
Kevin Garnett played for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Boston Celtics, and Brooklyn Nets during his illustrious NBA career, which spanned 21 seasons. He announced his retirement from professional basketball in 2016 and was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2020.
Garnett revealed in his memoir, KG: A to Z, (#CommissionsEarned) that he has ADHD and dyslexia, and was only diagnosed in “the last few years of my NBA career.”
“As a child, all I knew was that reading was hard and concentrating was even harder,” he wrote in his book.
Brittney Griner
Image by Michael E. Lee (CC BY-ND 2.0)
Basketball Player
Kevin Garnett played for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Boston Celtics, and Brooklyn Nets during his NBA career, which spanned 21 seasons. He announced his retirement from professional basketball in 2016 and was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2020.
Garnett revealed in his memoir, KG: A to Z, (#CommissionsEarned) that he has ADHD and dyslexia, and was only diagnosed in “the last few years of my NBA career.”
“As a child, all I knew was that reading was hard and concentrating was even harder,” he wrote in his book.
Image by Michael E. Lee (CC BY-ND 2.0)
Chris Mazdzer
Shot putter
Luger
Michelle Carter is a three-time Olympian who made history in 2016 when she became the first US women’s Olympic shot put champion. As of 2022, she remains the American record holder in the event.
Carter was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia as a child. “It was definitely a handful back then,” he said in an interview with Understood.org. “I couldn’t sit down long enough to study and learn.”
After a 25-year career, Carter announced his retirement from competitive athletics in 2022, but vowed he would not walk away from athletics altogether. She continues to run You Throw Girl, a sports confidence camp for girls.
Cammi Granato
Image by Filip Bossuyt (CC BY 2.0)
Ice Hockey Player
Michelle Carter is a three-time Olympian who made history in 2016 when she became the first US women’s Olympic shot put champion. As of 2022, she remains the American record holder in the event.
Carter was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia as a child. “It was definitely a handful back then,” he said in an interview with Understood.org. “I couldn’t sit down long enough to study and learn.”
After a 25-year career, Carter announced his retirement from competitive athletics in 2022, but vowed he would not walk away from athletics altogether. She continues to run You Throw Girl, a sports confidence camp for girls.
Andres Torres
Image by Filip Bossuyt (CC BY 2.0)
Baseball Player
long distance runner
Molly Seidel won bronze at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics in her third marathon. Later that year, she became the fastest American woman to run the New York City Marathon.
Seidel revealed that he was diagnosed with ADHD in 2022 after seeking help for mental health issues. “It would probably be appropriate to describe it as life changing,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “For the first time, I felt like I could get the quiet, functional brain in my everyday life that I could only get with intense physical activity before.”
In the same post, he wrote that he was seeking a therapeutic use exemption from the World Anti-Doping Agency so he could compete while taking Adderall, an ADHD drug.
Louis Smith
Image by Chiefbritton (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Gymnast
Molly Seidel won bronze at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics in her third marathon. Later that year, she became the fastest American woman to run the New York City Marathon.
Seidel revealed that he was diagnosed with ADHD in 2022 after seeking help for mental health issues. “It would probably be appropriate to describe it as life changing,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “For the first time, I felt like I could get the quiet, functional brain in my everyday life that I could only get with intense physical activity before.”
In the same post, he wrote that he was seeking a therapeutic use exemption from the World Anti-Doping Agency so he could compete while taking Adderall, an ADHD drug.
Nicola Adams
Image by Chiefbritton (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Boxer
Sprinter
Justin Gatlin is a five-time Olympic medalist who retired in early 2022 as one of the most decorated sprinters of all time. Gatlin revealed that he had been treating his ADHD with medication for years after a positive test for amphetamine led to a temporary ban from competing early in his career. (He stopped taking ADHD medication after the experience.)
“ADD sucks during training, but coming to the final I really feel a burst of energy,” he told The Independent in 2019. “When I go out on the track, I hear so much and see so many people and my mind becomes distracted, in I actually feel at home. It’s unsettling, but it makes me feel good that there’s so much going on.”
Ashley McKenzie
Image by Citizen59 (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Judoka
[Read: Activities that increase self-esteem, social skills & Behaviour]
Justin Gatlin is a five-time Olympic medalist who retired in early 2022 as one of the most decorated sprinters of all time. Gatlin revealed that he had been treating his ADHD with medication for years after a positive test for amphetamine led to a temporary ban from competing early in his career. (He stopped taking ADHD medication after the experience.)
“ADD sucks during training, but coming to the final I really feel a burst of energy,” he told The Independent in 2019. “When I go out on the track, I hear so much and see so many people and my mind becomes distracted, in I actually feel at home. It’s unsettling, but it makes me feel good that there’s so much going on.”
Scott Eyre
Image by Citizen59 (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Baseball Player
[Read: Activities that increase self-esteem, social skills & Behaviour]
Basketball player
Brittney Griner, an eight-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist, has played for the Phoenix Mercury since 2013. In the WNBA offseason, Griner also played for UMMC Ekaterinburg, a Russian basketball team.
Athletes with ADHD: Next Steps
She was traveling to join that pro team in February 2022 when she was arrested at a Russian airport for allegedly transporting hash oil into the country via vape cartridges. Since then she has not been able to leave Russia and was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to 9 years in prison in August 2022.
