By Niels Duinker
For most of my juggling career now, I’ve stood on stage, trying to get laughs and applause. But today, the kind of juggling that might truly change our craft is happening far from theaters—in locker rooms, classrooms, warm-up areas, training camps, and even recovery rooms of elite athletes.
Major media like The New York Times and Olympics.com are starting to take notice. World champions such as Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Max Verstappen, and Oleksandr Usyk are juggling not to entertain, but to gain a competitive edge. These athletes are discovering what many of us in the juggling world have always known: juggling sharpens the mind, coordinates the body, and trains tempo—skills essential for peak performance, whether on the sports field or while studying.
From Show Skill to Warm-Up Drill
When tennis phenom Carlos Alcaraz casually warmed up with three balls at Wimbledon, it caught the attention of his peers. Jannik Sinner, after seeing Alcaraz’s routine, began juggling too. In boxing, Oleksandr Usyk and Ryan Garcia use juggling to develop reflexes and rhythm. In track and field, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone uses juggling to connect the coordination of her arms and legs. In motorsport, Max Verstappen juggles before races to sharpen his reaction time.
This isn’t a coincidence. These athletes are discovering something fundamental: juggling is physical training that enhances motor coordination—a cornerstone of athletic success— while it calms the mind and helps with focus.
As a mechanical engineer and full-time juggler, I’ve always been drawn to the technical side of our craft. Professional juggling has taken me around the world—from live shows to even Nike’s headquarters. More recently, it brought me into the world of sports science.
Earlier this year, I became certified in the Athletic Skills Model (ASM), a Dutch framework that emphasizes ten fundamental movement skills. Here is an illustration of ASM’s Fundamental 10. When I perform my act on board a cruise ship, juggling effectively trains at least four of these:
- Throwing, catching, hitting & aiming
- Balancing & falling
- Music in motion (rhythm & tempo)
- Moving & locomotion (footwork coordination)
Think triathlon is a diverse sport? Triathletes primarily use only two of these ten skills during an entire race. Juggling, by contrast, provides a more comprehensive coordination foundation.
Together with Prof. Dr. Geert J.P. Savelsbergh, co-founder of the ASM, I co-authored an article in Sportgericht, a Dutch sports science journal, in which we highlighted how juggling can enhance physical and cognitive development in schoolchildren. What we found isn’t just promising—it’s exciting.
Motor Coordination: A Key Predictor of Athletic Success
The research is clear: motor coordination is a better predictor of long-term athletic success than strength or speed alone. A landmark longitudinal study by Lopes et al. (2011) followed 285 children from ages 6 to 10 and found that those with higher initial coordination levels were far more likely to maintain physical activity over time. Similar findings emerge across football, gymnastics, cycling, and badminton.
And juggling is a coordination powerhouse. It develops:
- Hand-eye integration
- Bilateral and cross-lateral coordination
- Whole-body synchronization
- Interhemispheric brain communication (between left and right hemispheres)
These neural and physical adaptations transfer directly to sport-specific skills. And in everyday life, the longer people stay fit and mobile, the longer they can participate fully in society into old age.
Evidence from the Field
Athletes who include juggling in their warm-ups—even for just a few minutes—report improved reaction time and enhanced coordination. While more formal studies are needed, initial observations are encouraging.
We’re not the first to recognize juggling’s athletic value. Soviet-era juggling theorists Mikhail Rudenko and Michael Staroseletsky emphasized juggling as a motor-learning tool decades ago. Their work is now being translated into English in The Compendium of Soviet Juggling Wisdom and The Paradoxes of Juggling.
Anthony Gatto, widely considered the most technically accomplished juggler of all time, has always said that becoming great at juggling demands the fitness of an elite athlete. The ASM promotes movement diversity to improve adaptability, reduce injury risk, and boost creativity and enjoyment. Juggling supports multiple pillars of this model simultaneously, making it an economical and highly effective training tool that can be done anywhere.
What’s Next? Juggling’s “Nike Moment”
I believe juggling today is where running was in the 1960s—just before Phil Knight founded Nike. Back then, running was niche and considered eccentric. Today, it’s a global fitness staple. Could juggling be next?
Consider this:
- It’s inexpensive and portable
- It offers quantifiable progression
- It trains brain and body simultaneously
- It develops multiple fundamental movement skills
- It’s age-inclusive and scalable
I think I caught a glimpse of this future when I taught over 2,500 people to juggle at Nike’s European headquarters during their “Just Do It Day.” Nike saw the potential. It’s time the rest of the world does too.
A Call to the Community
This article is an invitation to jugglers, coaches, athletes, and educators. The science is strong. Adoption is growing. The potential is enormous.
Let’s position the potential of juggling as more than entertainment. It’s an evidence-based tool for physical literacy, peak performance, and lifelong coordination. With proper research, implementation, and advocacy, juggling can take its place alongside running, yoga, and strength training as a core movement practice.
Let’s grow this movement—one toss at a time.
Niels Duinker
Niels Duinker is a lifetime member of the International Jugglers’ Association and a recipient of the IJA’s prestigious Excellence in Education Award. Through his brand, ND Juggling, he researches and publishes books on juggling history, technique, and pedagogy—aiming to preserve knowledge and inspire the next generation of jugglers.He brings those findings to life through the design and production of juggling equipment and through his live performances. His show "Gravity Is a Joke™" has taken him to all seven continents, where he shares his passion for juggling with audiences around the world.