One thing a receiver in football or a high jumper in track and Field learns early is that you can accelerate around a point or an arc while running. By carefully positioning your body you can also transfer this energy in another direction. A football player will often make an arc and accelerate along and arc of travel and then turn and receive the ball which has been thrown by the quarterback. While still maintaining his speed he can sling shot in another direction.
A high jumper in track and field will use an arc to speed up his acceleration and then launch himself into the air and over the bar and in a Faulsberry Flop maneuver. Every athlete should learn the tricks to accelerating your body around a point or an arc.
If you watch a baseball player rounding the bases as fast as he can go you will notice that they use an arc motion when rounding the bases. Obviously it makes sense that they can not turn on a dime and go a different direction after they touch each base. It is true that the shortest distance between two points is a straight-line.
But speed is often more important than distance. The ability of an athlete to accelerate around the apex of a point or an arc will often determine their level of play and speak directly to their talents and agility in sports. If you are a good athlete and you wish to become a great athlete then you need to learn the secrets of acceleration and body placement during a sweeping arc run.