How your favourite athletes achieve greatness

Have you ever wondered how your favourite athletes achieve greatness? How they find that last bit in the tank to bring home the glory? Where did Steven Gerrard find the energy to rifle home a 90^th minute equaliser against West Ham in the 2006 FA Cup final? Or Christophe Lamaison get the drive and power to almost single handily overcome the mighty all blacks in the 1999 Rugby World Cup semi-final as his 28 points steered the French to a 43-31 victory over New Zealand?

Many of us would have crumbled but these sportsmen found it in them to step up when it mattered.

The players that are remembered are the ones that want it the most. This means they not only have to train the hardest but eat what is right for them as well.

Diet is so important in sport, it is the difference between success or failure. To be the best you have to eat the best. That’s how players such as Ryan Giggs and Andre Agassi were able to prolong their careers at the top beyond what is normally expected.

If you then consider looking at the likes of Paul Gascoigne, yes he was a good player but he could have been so much better. He had potential to be spoken of with the likes of Messi and Ronaldo if only he had eaten the right food and drink, whilst taken better care of himself and his body.

It’s important that every young athlete knows what they should be eating. We wanted to help you understand more about what your diet for your chosen sport should be. This useful tool explains how many calories you should be consuming. There is information on how you burn the calories during a match and it allows you to compare the intake with different sports.