With a foreword by Carl Fogarty Joey Dunlop's story is one of towering triumphs and desperate tragedies in almost equal measure. Born poor - dirt poor - with no running water, no electricity, he was the definition of the everyman hero, earning the title 'King of the Roads' in what must be considered one of the world's most extreme sports - motorcycle road racing. And as well as being voted Northern Ireland's greatest ever sportsman, he remains the most loved and most successful road racer of all time. Joey Dunlop won the hearts and minds of millions during his thirty-one-year career, culminating in his greatest triumph in the year 2000 at the Isle of Man TT when, grey-haired, bespectacled, and approaching fifty years of age, he reclaimed his reputation as the greatest TT rider in history by defeating a whole new generation of talent and regaining the F1 crown for the first time in twelve years. But in road racing, tragedy is never very far away. Joey lost his life in a racing accident in July of 2000. It was just weeks after his final TT victory. More than 60,000 people attended Joey's funeral. Over twenty years after his untimely death, the sport has never truly recovered from his loss. Everyone with an interest in motorcycling knows the legend of Joey Dunlop but now, for the first time, they can get to know the man himself. This definitive new biography is the most comprehensive ever written on the man. In turns hilarious, triumphant and tragic, this is Dunlop's story as it has never been told before - by those who were part of it.

Niki Lauda drove a car for sport, but crossed the line between life and death and fought back to even greater glory. Even people who know nothing of Formula One have heard of his crash at Nurburgring in 1976, when we was dragged from the inferno of his Ferrari so badly injured he was given the last rites. Within 33 days, he was racing again at Monza. His wounds bled, he had no eyelids. He was terrified. A year later, he reclaimed his World Championship title.

In To Hell and Back he reveals how he battled fear to stage a comeback that seemed beyond human endurance. Then it’s Lauda vs Hunt, an epic rivalry later dramatized in 2013’s Hollywood blockbuster Rush, and he looks back on the strict childhood and parental disapproval that he believes gave him an ‘addiction to excellence’. There’ll never be another like him.

The survivor of a difficult childhood and youth, Rubin Carter rose to become a top contender for the middleweight boxing crown. But his career crashed to a halt on May 26, 1967, when he and another man were found guilty of the murder of three white people in a New Jersey bar. While in prison, Carter chronicled the events that led him from the ring to three consecutive life sentences and 10 years in solitary confinement. His story was a cry for help to the public, an attempt to set the record straight and force a new trial. Bob Dylan wrote a classic anthem for Carter's struggle; and Joan Baez, Muhammad Ali, Roberta Flack, and thousands more took up the cause as well. Originally published in 1974, this account is an eye-opening examination of growing up black in America, problems in the United States prison system, and Carter's own battles.

On 30 January 1981 Joe Tasker and Ade Burgess stood at 24,000 feet on the West Ridge of Mount Everest. Below them were their companions, some exhausted, some crippled by illness, all virtually incapacitated. Further progress seemed impossible. Everest the Cruel Way is Joe Tasker's story of an attempt to climb the highest mountain on earth - an attempt which pushed a group of Britain's finest mountaineers to their limits. The goal had been to climb Mount Everest at its hardest: via the infamous West Ridge, without supplementary oxygen and in winter. Tasker's epic account vividly describes experiences that no climber had previously endured. Close up and personal, it is a gripping account of day-to-day life on expedition and of the struggle to live at high altitude. Joe Tasker was one of Britain's best mountaineers. He was a pioneer of lightweight, alpine-style climbing in the Greater Ranges and had a special talent for writing. He died, along with his friend Peter Boardman, high on Everest in 1982 while attempting a new and unclimbed line. Both men were superb mountaineers and talented writers.

Just in time for the fiftieth anniversary of The Fight of the Century (Ali-Frazier I), Sparrin' with Smokin' Joe provides a penetrating, at times brutally candid, look at legendary champion Joe Frazier. While the more flamboyant, media-accessible Ali continues to receive the lion's share of the ink on their epic rivalry, Glenn Lewis rectifies that imbalance by focusing on the man whose ferocious fighting spirit enabled Ali to be viewed as truly great. Based on several months Lewis spent in the gym, on the road, and in verbal tussles with the Frazier as part of his inner circle in 1980, the book includes compelling, never-before-heard anecdotes that give new insight into Frazier and make readers reevaluate their impressions of Ali. Lewis argues that Joe actually won their second fight and even questions whether the wrong man got the mantle as "The Greatest."

Glen Sharp's boxing career was a rise-and-fall story without so much rise in it. A sparring partner for heavyweight Hall of Famer Yaqui Lopez, he "retired" with a record of one victory and two defeats. A decade later, having come to understand how and why he failed as a younger fighter, he attempted a comeback. Told with heart and wit, his memoir is a treatise on boxing as both profession and purpose. Sharp uses economic theory to describe the sweet science as a case study in resource management while recounting his own struggle to win fistic glory and his father's admiration.

At dusk on 24 September 1975, Doug Scott and Dougal Haston became the first Britons to reach the summit of Everest as lead climbers on Chris Bonington's epic expedition to the mountain's immense south-west face.As darkness fell, Scott and Haston scraped a small cave in the snow 100 metres below the summit and survived the highest bivouac ever - without bottled oxygen, sleeping bags and, as it turned out, frostbite. For Doug Scott, it was the fulfilment of a fortune-teller's prophecy given to his mother: that her eldest son would be in danger in a high place with the whole world watching.Scott and Haston returned home national heroes with their image splashed across the front pages. Scott went on to become one of Britain's greatest ever mountaineers, pioneering new climbs in the remotest corners of the globe. His career spans the golden age of British climbing from the 1960s boom in outdoor adventure to the new wave of lightweight alpinism throughout the 1970s and 1980s.In Up and About, the first volume of his autobiography, Scott tells his story from his birth in Nottingham during the darkest days of war to the summit of the world.Surviving the unplanned bivouac without oxygen near the summit of Everest widened the range of what and how he would climb in the future. In fact, Scott established more climbs on the high mountains of the world after his ascent of Everest than before. Those climbs will be covered in the second volume of his life and times.

High Stakes, Deep Faith, and Unbreakable Brotherhood They were the first No. 1 seed in NFL history to enter the playoffs as an underdog. Their star quarterback was out with a season-ending knee injury. Five-time Super Bowl champions the New England Patriots towered over them. But public opinion didn't matter to the Philadelphia Eagles. They believed in each other. The band of Christian brothers on the team believed in the God of the impossible, and they played for an audience of One. The most extensive book to explore the Christian faith shared by many of the team's players, Birds of Pray details the incredible inside story behind the Eagles' capture of the biggest prize in professional sports: the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Through exclusive interviews with the players, never-before-seen photos, and insider accounts of the miracle season's most memorable moments, Philly native and Associated Press sportswriter Rob Maaddi reveals a side of the team the world has yet to fully witness. From an impromptu baptism in the team's cold tub to weekly Bible studies and pre-game prayers, to the unique friendship between star quarterback Carson Wentz and back-up-then-MVP Nick Foles - the Eagles excel in the unexpected. Birds of Pray follows the deep faith shared among players, the high stakes they faced together, and their relentless reliance on Christ who gives all strength in moments of crisis and celebration alike. The result is a boldly inspiring, entertaining read that will challenge readers to go deeper in their faith, dream bigger, and live with renewed courage for whatever odds life stacks against them.

LONGLISTED FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES SPORTS BOOK AWARDS 2022 'Anyone wanting an example of never being beaten should look at the incredible Francis Benali.' - Alan Shearer 'Honest, revealing story of a strong man who pushed his body to its limits and beyond on and off the pitch. Incredible read.' - Henry Winter, The Times 'The iron man with a will of steel and a heart of gold. Truly fran-tastic!' - Jeff Stelling, Soccer Saturday ------- Francis Benali is a Southampton Football Club legend and a celebrated charity endurance athlete, and he's ready to tell his story. Francis 'Franny' Benali played football for 20 years for Southampton FC in nearly 400 games, almost his entire career. His utter dedication to the club caused him to be a hero to Saints fans around the world. Written with the acclaimed Daily Mail sportswriter Matt Barlow, this book details Benali's humble beginnings and has countless tales involving players, managers, and matches detailing Benali's illustrious football career. But his story is much more than that. The intense commitment he had as a player found a new outlet in the world of endurance sport. Through Ironman triathlons and marathons, he has raised more than GBP1 million for Cancer Research UK. Benali's story shows us what can be achieved through dedication and commitment on and off the pitch. Through football and charity, he has made a positive difference in countless people's lives. His is truly an inspirational story.

Another peek at baseball's good old days-or, in this case, bad old days-by veteran sports-historian Harvey Frommer. Frommer paints Shoeless Joe as a baseball natural ("Joe Jackson hit the ball harder than any man ever to play baseball"-Ty Cobb), an illiterate hick (his table utensils consisted of knife and fingers), and an innocent man snared by the greatest scandal in baseball history.

Shortlisted for the Boardman Tasker Award for Mountain Literature. 'As I sat cradling the man's head, with his blood and brains sticking to my hands, I heard a voice - my own voice. It was asking me something. Asking how I had ended up like this, desperate and lost among people who thought nothing of caving in a man's head and then standing back to watch him die.' Nick Bullock was a prison officer working in a maximum-security jail with some of Britain's most notorious criminals. Trapped in a world of aggression and fear, he felt frustrated and alone. Then he discovered the mountains. Making up for lost time, Bullock soon became one of Britain's best climbers, learning his trade in the mountains of Scotland and Wales, and travelling from Pakistan to Peru in his search for new routes and a new way of seeing the world - and ultimately an escape route from his life inside. Told that no one ever leaves the service - the security, the stability, the 'job for life' - Bullock focused his existence on a single goal: to walk free, with no shackles, into a mountain life. Echoes is a powerful and compelling exploration of freedom, and what it means to live life on your own terms.

In the early 1970s, the athletes of the German Democratic Republic started to achieve incredible sports results, winning medals and setting new world records with astonishing frequency. For many years, their sporting supremacy was hailed as a triumph of the socialist government's commitment to scientific research and innovative training methods. But after the Cold War ended, the Stasi archives revealed a sinister secret behind the successes: a perverse doping system imposed by the government itself. Drugs were administered to young athletes, often without their consent, and the price their bodies are now paying is very high, both physically and mentally. Through the athletes' personal stories, Synthetic Medals reveals the events that led to the discovery of the state-doping system and the subsequent trial. It also explores the state's motives for this crime against its own people - people who were sacrificed on the altar of a distorted ideology, for the simple purpose of achieving glory on the international chessboard.

Shane Warne, who died in 2022, is universally acknowledged as one of the greatest cricketers of all time - and the greatest spin bowler ever. Warne in Wisden records the highlights of an exceptional career - handpicked from all Wisden publications over a twenty-plus-year period and curated for a global audience. Warne in Wisden features coverage from Warne's first Test against India in 1992 - where he took one wicket - to his retirement from Test cricket in 2007, having taken 708 Test wickets. It includes complete reports and scorecards for key Tests, as well as Wisden's assessment of his impact on the English county game and the Indian Premier League, and his journey from master spinner to global celebrity. Warne combined a prodigious talent for leg-spin with a turbulent life off the pitch. While Wisden's focus was generally on his cricket, Warne in Wisden also relates the controversies and rows that earned him a occasional mention in the Chronicle section of the book. Wisden's authoritative and independent voice/writing provides a unique insight into one of the most discussed cricketers in history. Warne in Wisden includes: Cricketer of the Year by Vic Marks, 1994 'A Spin-Doctor Writes' by Ashley Mallett, 1997 Five Cricketers of the Century, 2000-13 Leading Cricketer in the World, 2004-2005 'The mighty craftsman' by Mike Atherton 2007 'The Ashes Masters' by David Frith 2009 The ebbs and flows of Warne's 21 -year -long career His obituary and related articles from Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 2023 Scorecards of his most significant Test matches Colour plate section

Mara Yamauchi is a two-time Olympian, Commonwealth Games bronze medalist, and the UK's second-fastest female marathon runner ever with a personal best of 2:23:12. But there is much more to Mara than just running fast. This book of 42.195 insights-the number of kilometers in a marathon-distills the wealth of wisdom and experience Mara has gained as a world-class athlete. From planning training, optimizing nutrition, and preparing effectively for racing to coping with disappointments and struggles with mental illness, Mara shares everything she has learned-good and bad-as one of the world's top marathoners. Still, she does not spoon-feed her readers with training plans; instead, she encourages them to think critically to understand how to improve and set their own goals. This book also takes the reader into the revered world of distance running in Japan, one of the world's marathon superpowers. It has something for everyone, from beginner runners to competitive athletes and those aspiring to the very top. Mara's insights are also applicable beyond running and are meant for anyone who wants to realize a dream or achieve a lifetime goal in whatever field is special to them.

Almost as soon as Gazza burst on to the scene at Newcastle United, the young Geordie was the centre of attention: Vinnie Jones's notorious ball-handling showed the lengths people would go to try to stop him. Then, with England on the verge of possibly reaching the World Cup final in 1990, came Gazza's tears - the moment that brought a whole new audience to the sport and helped set the football boom of the 1990s on its way. But then came a career-threatening injury, mental health problems, self-confessed alcoholism and family disputes, as life in the full glare of the media spotlight became too much. Now, at the end of his top-flight playing career, Gazza is ready to confront his demons. The result is quite simply the most remarkable footballing story you'll ever read: what it's like being Paul Gascoigne, in his own words.

'It was Kongur that dominated everything, and was the focus of our gaze and aspirations.' So thought Chris Bonington upon the Chinese Mountaineering Association's decision to open many of Tibet and China's mountains to foreigners in the 1980s. Not only did this mean that Kongur, China's 7,719-metre peak, was available to climb, but that those choosing to do so would be among the first to set foot there. It was an opportunity too good to miss. For the planned alpine-style ascent of this daunting peak, Bonington assembled a formidable team, including Peter Boardman, Joe Tasker, Al Rouse and expedition leader Michael Ward. Their reconnaissance and 1981 expedition brought opportunity for discovery and obstacles in equal measure: they were able to explore areas that had eluded westerners since Eric Shipton's role as British Consul General in Kashgar in the 1940s; but appalling weather, unplanned bivouacs and tensions characterised their quest for the ever-elusive route to the summit. Featuring diary extracts and recollections from each team member, this account not only captures the gripping detail of the ascent attempts, but also the ebb and flow of the relationships between the remarkable mountaineers involved. Add to this the pioneering medical work on high-altitude illnesses conducted by the four-man medical team, and the result is a book which captures a unique moment in mountaineering history. Written with the cheer and eloquence typical of Chris Bonington, Kongur captures the essence of adventure and exploration that brings readers back to his books time and time again.

Before Pep Guardiola and before Jose Mourinho, there was Bela Guttmann: the first superstar football coach, and the man who paved the way for the celebrated coaches of the modern age. He was also a Holocaust survivor. In 1944, much of Europe had wanted Guttmann dead. He hid for months in an attic near Budapest as thousands of fellow Jews in the neighbourhood were dragged off to be murdered. Later, he escaped from a slave labour camp before a planned deportation and almost certain death. His father, sister and wider family were murdered. But by 1961, as coach of Benfica, he had lifted Europe's greatest sporting prize, the European Cup, a feat he repeated the following year. This biography spans two contrasting visions of Europe: one of barbarism and genocide, and one of beauty, wonder and romance, of balmy evenings in magnificent cities, where great players would stretch every sinew in a bid to win football's holy grail. With dark forces rising once again in that continent, the story of Bela Guttmann's life asks the question: which vision will triumph in our times?

'A superb portrait of the most brilliant cricketer of his generation' Mike Atherton Shane Warne dominated cricket on the field and off for almost thirty years - his skill, his fame, his personality, his misadventures. His death in March 2002 rocked Australians, even those who could not tell a leg-break from a leg-pull. But what was it like to watch Warne at his long peak, the man of a thousands international wickets, the incarnation of Aussie audacity and cheek? Gideon Haigh saw it all, still can't quite believe it, but wanted to find a way to explain it. In this classic appreciation of Australia's cricket's greatest figure, who doubled as the nation's best-known man, Haigh relieves the highs, the lows, the fun and the follies. The result is a new way of looking at Warne, at sport and at Australia. 'Bloody brilliant... As good as anything I have read on the game' Guardian Winner of The Cricket Society and MCC Book of the Year

When in 1911 Phillies pitcher Grover Cleveland Alexander set the National League record for wins by a rookie (28), it was a sign of things to come. Alexander went on to win 373 games over his 20?year career, the third highest total in major league history, and he would lead the league in ERA four times, shutouts seven times, complete games six times, and wins six times. But he also became a deeply troubled man. After the Shell-Shocked pitcher returned from World War I, he would battle alcoholism, epilepsy, and personal demons that damaged his reputation and proved disastrous for his life outside of baseball. This biography sheds new light on the pitcher and the man, focusing on Alexander's personal life, especially his complex relationship with his wife, Aimee, as well as their marriages and divorces. His Hall of Fame career, wartime service, and long decline are also documented.

In this controversial national bestseller, former NBA star and author of I May Be Wrong But I Doubt It Charles Barkley takes on the major issue of our time. Who's Afraid of a Large Black Man is a series of charged, in-your-face conversations about race with some of America's most prominent figures, including Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Jesse Jackson, Samuel L. Jackson, Morgan Freeman, Ice Cube, Marian Wright Edelman, Tiger Woods, Peter Guber, and Robert Johnson.

'Wonderfully entertaining' Mail on Sunday; Profoundly important' Guardian Graeme Fowler - former England cricketer, happy-go-lucky joker and inspirational coach - was 47 when depression struck. Suddenly one of the most active men you'd ever meet couldn't even get up off the sofa to make a cup of tea. In Absolutely Foxed, a cricket memoir like no other, Fowler takes the reader on a vivid ride, with riotous stories of life on England tours, partying with Ian Botham and Elton John, combined with a moving account of his battle with mental-health issues, Seen by many as a maverick, happy-go-lucky figure, Fowler became a hugely influential coach, and is one of the most original thinkers about the game. He's battled and won against the best spinners in India, and the fastest bowlers from the West Indies - he's even found himself at the centre of a tabloid storm. Fowler looks back over his 40 years in the professional game, spending 16 years on the county circuit with Lancashire and Durham, and three years as an England international - a period that was cut short by a life-threatening injury. He followed that with a spell working on Test Match Special, before running the Durham Centre of Excellence for 18 years. In his Foreword, lifelong friend Sir Ian Botham describes Fowler as 'one of the gutsiest I ever encountered', but also points out how he 'made a dressing room tick'. Those elements of courage, knowledge and humour are all present in Absolutely Foxed - a truly unmissable read. 'A very honest, thought-provoking autobiography' David Lloyd, Daily Mail