In 1953 Hermann Buhl made the first ascent of Nanga Parbat - the ninth-highest mountain in the world, and the third 8,000-metre peak to be climbed, following Annapurna and Everest. It was one of the most incredible and committed climbs ever made. Continuing alone and without supplementary oxygen, Buhl made a dash for the summit after his partners turned back. On a mountain that had claimed thirty-one lives, an exhausted Buhl waded through deep snow and climbed over technical ground to reach the summit, driven on by an 'irresistible urge'. After a night spent standing on a small ledge at over 8,000 metres, Buhl returned forty-one hours later, exhausted and at the very limit of his endurance.Written shortly after Buhl's return from the mountain, Nanga Parbat Pilgrimage is a classic of mountaineering literature that has inspired thousands of climbers. It follows Buhl's inexorable rise from rock climber to alpinist to mountaineer, until, almost inevitably, he makes his phenomenal Nanga Parbat climb. Buhl's book, and ascent, reminded everyone that, while the mountains could never be conquered, they could be climbed with sufficient enthusiasm, spirit and dedication.

"An exciting and engrossing book with stories that are worth telling. This work will engage fans of Charlie O. Finley and the Oakland Athletics, along with anyone captivated by baseball history." -- Library Journal, starred review The Oakland A's of the early 1970s: Never before had an entire organization so collectively traumatized baseball's establishment with its outlandish behavior and business decisions. The high drama that played out on the field--five straight division titles and three straight championships--was exceeded only by the drama in the clubhouse and front office. Under the visionary leadership of owner Charles O. Finley, the team assembled such luminary figures as Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter, Rollie Fingers, and Vida Blue, and with garish uniforms and revolutionary facial hair, knocked baseball into the modern age. Finley's insatiable need for control--he was his own general manager and dictated everything from the ballpark organist's playlist to the menu for the media lounge--made him ill-suited for the advent of free agency. Within two years, his dynasty was lost. A sprawling, brawling history of one of the game's most unforgettable teams, Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic is a paean to the sport's most turbulent, magical team, during one of major league baseball's most turbulent, magical times.

Dr Tony Ryan Award finalist, 2019 'A wonderfully insightful, detailed and emotional biography of the legendary trainer's later years' Racing Post '[Cecil's] is a remarkable story and it has now been told with compassion, love, honesty and wonderful insight by Tony Rushmer' David Walsh, Sunday Times With a foreword by John Gosden When Henry Cecil sent out just 12 winners in 2005 it seemed as if the 10-time champion racehorse trainer's career was in terminal decline. The masterly touch that he'd shown through the glory-days of the two previous decades appeared to have deserted him after a series of painful professional and personal blows, including the death of his twin brother David. When Cecil was diagnosed with cancer in June 2006, it would have been enough to break many a man. But behind the scenes, the master of Warren Place in Newmarket was determined not to be labelled - in his words - a 'has-been'. Showing an iron resolve to fight for his professional reputation as well as his life, Cecil staged one of the great sporting comebacks. It was a story that captured the imagination of the racing public and beyond, peaking with his supreme handling of the unbeaten champion Frankel. Cecil's astonishing revival was witnessed in close-up by Tony Rushmer. The sports journalist became a trusted stable insider after being engaged in spring 2006 to help with the trainer's website and PR. He would remain part of the team right up until Cecil died in June 2013. Rushmer's unique access over seven years - in which he saw Cecil at the best and worst of times - allows him to provide a fresh perspective on an incredible part of the trainer's career. He is helped by many of those who were closest to the story, having interviewed numerous people during his extensive research. Containing fascinating detail and a wealth of new material, The Triumph of Henry Cecil shows how Cecil emerged from his slump, displayed relentless strength in the face of a cruel disease and trained the magnificent Frankel - as brilliant a racehorse as the sport has ever known.

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER FROM CRICKET'S HUGELY POPULAR COMMENTATOR With his infectious enthusiasm for the game, David 'Bumble' Lloyd blends immense knowledge and experience with an eye for the quirky detail and an unending fund of brilliant stories. This definitive autobiography recalls his childhood in Accrington, Lancashire, when, after a long day playing cricket in the street, he would get his chance to wash himself in his family's bath - but only after his parents and uncle had taken their turn first. From being last in the tin bath, he moved on to make his debut for Lancashire while still in his teens, eventually earning an England call-up, when he had to face the pace of Lillee and Thomson - with painful and eye-watering consequences. After retiring as a player, he became an umpire and then England coach during the 1990s, before eventually turning to commentary with Sky Sports. After spending more than 50 years involved with the professional game, Bumble's memoir is packed with hilarious anecdotes from the golden age of Lancashire cricket through to the glitzy modern era of T20 cricket. He provides vivid behind-the-scenes insight into life with England and on the Sky commentary team. Last in the Tin Bath is a joy to read from start to finish and was shortlisted for the British Sports Book Awards Autobiography of the Year.

Five-time Mr. Universe, seven-time Mr. Olympia, and Mr. World, Arnold Schwarzenegger is the name in bodybuilding.

Here is his classic bestselling autobiography, which explains how the "Austrian Oak" came to the sport of bodybuilding and aspired to be the star he has become.

"I still remember that first visit to the bodybuilding gym. I had never seen anyone lifting weights before. Those guys were huge and brutal....The weight lifters shone with sweat; they were powerful looking, Herculean. And there it was before me -- my life, the answer I'd been seeking. It clicked. It was something I suddenly just seemed to reach out and find, as if I'd been crossing a suspended bridge and finally stepped off onto solid ground."
Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold shares his fitness and training secrets -- demonstrating with a comprehensive step-by-step program and dietary hints how to use bodybuilding for better health. His program includes a special four-day regimen of specific exercises to develop individual muscle groups -- each exercise illustrated with photos of Arnold in action.

For fans and would-be bodybuilders, this is Arnold in his own words.

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.

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.

Hulk Hogan, born Terry Bollea, burst onto the professional wrestling scene in the late seventies and went on to become a world wrestling champion many times over. From humble beginnings, this giant of a man escaped a pre-ordained life of dock and construction work in Port Tampa, Florida, to become one of the most recognizable celebrities on the planet. He did it through sheer will, grit, determination, and a drive to always go over the top and do more than what others thought possible. From the outside, his story was one of a charmed life--he was at the top of his career, had a wonderful and loving family, and a lifelong fan base who worshipped him. Of course he had his up and downs--including hints of steroid abuse and his falling out with WWE and Vince McMahon--but it's been the last two years that have tested Hogan more than any other in his lifetime. In 2007, while riding the massive success of his VH1 reality show, "Hogan Knows Best, "his son Nick was involved in a tragic car accident that left his best friend in critical condition. Then Linda, his wife, left him after 23 years of marriage, his beloved daughter Brooke blamed him for the breakup and his son went to jail. The tabloid media had a field day. When unflattering jailhouse conversations between him and his son were released to the press the tabloids were in a frenzy. The sudden turmoil and tragedy surrounding Hogan took its toll. He fell into a deep depression, seeing no way out, until one fate ful phone call. In "My Life Outside the Ring," Hogan will unabash edly recount these events, revealing how his new found clarity steadied him during the most difficult match of his life--and how he emerged from the battle feeling stronger than ever before.

"I was right there leaning on the side of the car with my hands when I finally saw Nick--my only son--folded up like an accordion with his head down by the gas pedal. "Nick " I yelled. I could see he was alive. He turned his head, he stuck his hand out, and gave me a thumbs-up. For a second I was relieved. Then the chaos set in. The noise of engines. Sirens. A saw. Para - medics pulling John from the passenger seat. So much blood. I can't even describe to you how panicked I was. The police and firefighters surrounding us seemed panicked, too. The firefighters started cutting the side of the car open to try to get Nick out, and I'm still standing right there when I hear my boy screaming, "No, no, no, stop Stop You're gonna cut my legs off. Dad Just unbuckle the seatbelt. I can get out " So I reach in and I push the button on his seat belt, and Nick just crawls right out. His wrist was broken. His ribs were cracked. None of that mattered. He was gonna be okay. But not John. John wasn't moving. ""--from "MY LIFE OUTSIDE THE RING

'I believe we so far forgot ourselves as to shake hands on it.' - H. W. Tilman, on reaching the summit of Nanda Devi.In 1934, after fifty years of trying, mountaineers finally gained access to the Nanda Devi Sanctuary in the Garhwal Himalaya. Two years later an expedition led by H.W. Tilman reached the summit of Nanda Devi. At over 25,000 feet, it was the highest mountain to be climbed until 1950.The Ascent of Nanda Devi, Tilman's account of the climb, has been widely hailed as a classic. Keenly observed, well informed and at times hilariously funny, it is as close to a 'conventional' mountaineering account as Tilman could manage.Beginning with the history of the mountain ('there was none') and the expedition's arrival in India, Tilman recounts the build-up and approach to the climb. Writing in his characteristic dry style, he tells how Sherpas are hired, provisions are gathered (including 'a mouth-blistering sauce containing 100 per cent chillies') and the climbers head into the hills, towards Nanda Devi.Superbly parodied in The Ascent of Rum Doodle by W.E. Bowman, The Ascent of Nanda Devi was among the earliest accounts of a climbing expedition to be published.Much imitated but rarely matched, it remains one of the best.

A tribute to Richie Benaud and a celebration of his life. Remembering Richie is a compilation of the very best writing from Richie's books, along with the best tributes and obituaries from those who knew and worked with him. As a player, Richie was one of the greatest of cricket's all-rounders. As a commentator and thinker on the game he became the leading figure of his generation. As a man he was revered by cricket's multitude of followers and as a friend he was both loved and admired by his close circle of friends. This celebratory book brings together the best of Richie's writing on a range of subjects from his love of cricket as a child to his all time XIs; from his thoughts on T20 to insight into his family life, along with his most loved sayings and best known pieces of commentary. All perfectly complemented with tributes from his friends and colleagues.

Ian Robertson joined the BBC during the golden age of radio broadcasting and was given a crash course in the art of sports commentary from some of the greatest names ever to sit behind a microphone: Cliff Morgan and Peter Bromley, Bryon Butler and John Arlott. Almost half a century after being introduced to the rugby airwaves by his inspiring mentor Bill McLaren, the former Scotland fly-half looks back on the most eventful of careers, during which he covered nine British and Irish Lions tours and eight World Cups, including the 2003 tournament that saw England life the Webb Ellis Trophy and "Robbo" pick up awards for his spine-tingling description of Jonny Wilkinson's decisive drop goal. He reflects on his playing days, his role in guiding Cambridge University to a long spell of Varsity Match supremacy and his relationships with some of the union code's most celebrated figures, including Sir Clive Woodward and Jonah Lomu. He also writes vividly and hilariously of his experiences as a horse racing enthusiast, his meetings with some of the world's legendary golfers and his dealings with a stellar cast of sporting outsiders, from Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor to Nelson Mandela. It is a hugely entertaining story that begins in a bygone rugby age, yet has much to say about the game in the here and now.

Hierdie boek het ontstaan as 'n verhaal oor die lewe van 'n besonderse mens: David Samaai. Maar baie gou besef jy dat dit eintlik 'n boek oor 'n baie besonderse familie, die Samaai-familie woonagtig in Paarl, is. Davy Samaai was 'n legendariese tennisspeler, 'n begaafde musikant, 'n inspirerende skoolhoof of hardwerkende onderwyser. Hy het ook met sy voorbeeld gelei.

In September 1972, Rodney Milburn of Opelousas, LA won the Olympic gold medal in the men's 110 meter high hurdles. Raised amidst segregation and poverty in the 1950's and 60's, Milburn honed his skills on a grass track over wooden hurdles - the most improbable of settings for a future Olympic champion. In a career that spanned more than a decade, Milburn established himself as the greatest hurdler of his era, and one of the greatest athletes in track history. In November 1997, while working at a paper mill near Baton Rouge, LA, Milburn passed away in a tragic accident. He was 47. This biography chronicles his rise from poverty to international athletic stardom, and the impact that he had on many lives. Included are insights from those who knew him well - from old coaches and teammates to competitive rivals. All those he encountered loved him, and marveled that such a successful athlete could be so humble. Track legends Renaldo Nehemiah, Dwight Stones, Tonie Campbell, Brian Oldfield, Bill Collins, and many others give their take on Milburn's remarkable achievements, and on the even more remarkable human being who inspired an entire generation of athletes who came after him.

The long-awaited autobiography of Liverpool FC and Ireland legend, Ronnie Whelan
* "Trade" paperback was an Irish top ten bestseller
* Ronnie Whelan is one of football's legends and has a huge number of fans who
want to hear his story in his own words
* The book will appeal to both the Liverpool and Ireland fanbases
* The book is a revealing and personal account of Whelan's life and career, including
the sometimes difficult relationships he had with a few of football's biggest names
* Whelan's football career spanned some of Liverpool's greatest highs and lows,
including the heyday of the 1980s and the tragedies of Hillsborough and Heysel
* "A fascinating insight into a golden era for Liverpool" - Liverpool Echo
Ronnie Whelan was a mainstay of the iconic 1980s Liverpool FC side that won six
League Championships, two FA Cups, three League Cups, as well as an unforgettable
European Cup. Under the management of Kenny Dalglish, Whelan and his club team
mates, including Alan Hansen, John Barnes, and Bruce Grobbelaar, formed one of the
finest club sides in English football history -- a side that is dear to the hearts of
Liverpool fans to this day.
It was also, though, a time of great tragedy; when the twin disasters of Heysel and
Hillsborough devastated the club and its supporters.
In this frank and full-hearted autobiography, Ronnie Whelan tells the story of the
good and the bad times at the club, as well as his international career with Ireland.

BRENT POPPEN'S "Tragedy On The Mountain" reveals how a sports accident at age sixteen left the author a quadriplegic, but it did not paralyze his athletic dream. Poppen competed in two consecutive Paralympics, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008, in wheelchair rugby and tennis, earning a Bronze Medal in wheelchair rugby and numerous Gold Medals and world titles in both sports. This book is a riveting read, a true story of courage in the face of adversity, of triumph over tragedy. Brent's road to recovery was riddled with potholes, but in the end he was victorious. He's an inspiration to anyone. BRENT POPPEN, a USA Bronze and Gold Medalist in wheelchair rugby and tennis, is an avid water skier, substitute teacher, counselor and international motivational speaker. He earned a bachelor's degree in social science from Chapman College in Southern California. Brent and his lovely wife, Erica, reside in Paso Robles, California, where he does substitute teaching and Erica is an elementary school teacher.

FULLY UPDATED WITH JOSE MOURINHO'S SENSATIONAL RETURN TO CHELSEA When Jose Mourinho realised as a teenager that he was never going to be a great player, he decided he was going to become the best coach in the world. From translator and assistant to Sir Bobby Robson at Barcelona to multiple league and Champions League-winning manager at Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and now Chelsea once again, Jose Mourinho's ascent has been rapid. FURTHER ANATOMY OF A WINNER is the definitive account of the life and psychology of one of the greatest football managers of all time.

The NFL is the most popular professional sports league in the United States. Its athletes receive multi-million dollar contracts and almost endless media attention. The league's most important game, the Super Bowl, is practically a national holiday. Making it to the NFL, however, is not about the promised land of fame and fortune. Robert Turner draws on his personal experience as a former pro and interviews with over 120 current and former NFL players to get behind the bravado and reveal what it means to be an athlete in the NFL and why so many players struggle with life after football. Without guaranteed contracts, the majority of players are forced out of the league after a few seasons. Over three-quarters of retirees experience bankruptcy or financial ruin, two-thirds live with chronic pain, and too many find themselves on the wrong side of the law. Robert Turner argues that the fall from grace of so many players is no accident. The NFL, he contends, is a total institution, powerfully determining their experiences in and out of the league. The labor agreement provides little job insecurity and few health and retirement benefits, and the owners refuse to share power with the players, making change difficult. Even more, the entire process of becoming an elite football player-from high school through the pros-leaves athletes with few marketable skills and little preparation for their first Sunday off the field. With compassion and objectivity, Not for Long reveals the life and mind of the NFL athlete and provides a guide on what reforms and policies might help players transition successfully out of the sport.

Kevin Pietersen's cricketing career has been full of drama, both on the pitch and away from it. In this, his new memoir, Kevin recalls the key battles he's faced at the crease and reflects on his most memorable innings.

The book offers a unique perspective on what it feels like to be a batsman facing some of the most hostile bowling attacks in the world, and an understanding of how his cricketing brain operates.

Above all, it is going to be a celebration of an extraordinary career - a must-read for all sports fans.

In 2007, Adam, then a toaster salesman, was inspired by a film about a man attempting to change his life by swimming the English Channel to try to emulate the feat. After a year of rigorous training without a coach, Adam achieved his goal in 11 hours 35 minutes, despite a ruptured bicep tendon leading to medical advice to give up long-distance swimming. In 2011, after two operations and a change to his swimming style to take pressure off his injured shoulder, he became the first Briton to achieve a two-way crossing from Spain to Morocco and back. In the process, he broke the British record one way. Shortly afterwards, the Ocean's Seven challenge was born, a gruelling equivalent to the Seven Summits mountaineering challenge. At first it seemed that injury would prevent Adam from participating but, ignoring medical advice, he developed an innovative technique - the Ocean Walker stroke - that would enable him to continue with the ultimate aim of completing this seemingly impossible feat. Whether man would triumph over ocean, or fail in the attempt, forms the core of this extraordinary autobiography. Always intriguing, sometimes terrifying, and occasionally very funny, Adam's story is about sport in its truest form: rather than competitions between teams and individuals, it is about man against nature - and against his own failings and demons. In that, it is truly inspirational.

THE EXTRAORDINARY STORY OF THE ICE-SKATING DUO WHO BECAME THE NATION'S FAVOURITES - NOW THE SUBJECT OF A MAJOR ITV BIOPIC. When Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean collapsed to the ice at the climax of their routine to Bolero in the 1984 Winter Olympics, the judges could find no fault, awarding them 12 maximum scores of 6.0, while 24 million viewers watching at home in Britain simply looked on in amazement. Suddenly, we were all experts in figure skating, and we wanted to know more about the couple at the heart of it all. Despite intense interest in them, Torvill & Dean kept their lives private, with many still wondering if the pair were really a couple. They turned professional and would eventually spend eight years working on ITV's Dancing on Ice, but still much of their story remained unknown. Now, in Our Life on Ice, Torvill & Dean finally open up about the challenges they have faced and the pressures of life in the public eye: Jayne speaks candidly about her struggle with husband Phil to have children, while Chris reveals the heartache in his family story. And of course, there is the skating, and the stories about what inspired their famous routines, and what the pair hope to achieve in the future as the approach their fortieth anniversary working together. It is the book their millions of fans have been waiting to read.

A Sunday Times Book of the Year 'For anyone interested in Lee's legacy, this is a roundhouse kick of a biography' - Sunday Times 'At last, Bruce Lee has the powerful biography he deserves... It will thrill Lee's fans and fascinate the unfamiliar' - Jonathan Eig, author of Ali: A Life and Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig 'Meticulously researched' - Jimmy McDonough, author of Shakey: Neil Young's Biography and Soul Survivor: A Biography of Al Green 'You won't find a better match for a biographer with his subject than Matthew Polly and Bruce Lee... A definitive biography, told with passion and punch' - Brian Jay Jones, author George Lucas: A Life and Jim Henson: The Biography. More than forty years after Bruce Lee's sudden death at age 32, journalist and author Matthew Polly has written the definitive account of Lee's life. It's also one of the only accounts; incredibly, there has never been an authoritative biography of Lee. Following a decade of research that included conducting more than one hundred interviews with Lee's family, friends, business associates and even the mistress in whose bed Lee died, Polly has constructed a complex, humane portrait of the icon. There are his early years as a child star in Hong Kong cinema; his actor father's struggles with opium addiction and how that turned Bruce into a troublemaking teenager who was kicked out of high school and eventually sent to America to shape up; his beginnings as a martial arts teacher, eventually becoming personal instructor to movie stars like Steve McQueen; his struggles as an Asian-American actor in Hollywood and frustration seeing role after role he auditioned for go to white actors in eye makeup; his eventual triumph as a leading man; his challenges juggling a sky-rocketing career with his duties as a father and husband; and his shocking end that to this day is still shrouded in mystery. Polly breaks down the myth of Bruce Lee and argues that, contrary to popular belief, he was an ambitious actor who was obsessed with martial arts-not a great kung-fu master who just so happened to make a couple of movies. The book offers an honest look at an impressive yet flawed man whose personal story was even more entertaining and inspiring than any fictional role he played on-screen. Praise for Matthew Polly 'Hypnotic...Tapped Out manages to humanize a sport once demonized as "human cockfighting" by deconstructing the stereotype of the martial-arts tough guy.' - New York Times 'Tapped Out is a knockout for MMA fans, who will laugh at the intimate portraits Polly sketches of some of the sport's most famous personalities. But it also works for those not familiar with the sport...You won't be disappointed.' - OpposingViews.com 'A delight to read.' - TheFightNerd.com 'Polly's self-deprecation in the painful learning process stands out as much as the witty prose. His delivery is Plimpton-esque.' - ESPN.com 'Smoothly written . . . Polly has a good eye for characters.' - Publishers Weekly

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 The full story of the man who brought unprecedented - and since unmatched - success to Liverpool FC Bob Paisley was the quiet man in the flat cap who swept all domestic and European opposition aside and produced arguably the greatest club team that Britain has ever known. The man whose Liverpool team won trophies at a rate-per-season that dwarfs Sir Alex Ferguson's achievements at Manchester United and who remains the only Briton to lead a team to three European Cups. From Wembley to Rome, Manchester to Madrid, Paisley's team was the one no one could touch. Working in a city which was on its knees, in deep post-industrial decline, still tainted by the 1981 Toxteth riots and in a state of open warfare with Margaret Thatcher, he delivered a golden era - never re-attained since - which made the city of Liverpool synonymous with success and won them supporters the world over. Yet, thirty years since Paisley died, the life and times of this shrewd, intelligent, visionary, modest football man have still never been fully explored and explained. Based on in-depth interviews with Paisley's family and many of the players whom he led to an extraordinary haul of honours between 1974 and 1983, Quiet Genius is the first biography to examine in depth the secrets of Paisley's success. It inspects his man-management strategies, his extraordinary eye for a good player, his uncanny ability to diagnose injuries in his own players and the opposition, and the wicked sense of humour which endeared him to so many. It explores the North-East mining community roots which he cherished, and considers his visionary outlook on the way the game would develop. Quiet Genius is the story of how one modest man accomplished more than any other football manager, found his attributes largely unrecorded and undervalued and, in keeping with the gentler ways of his generation, did not seem to mind. It reveals an individual who seemed out of keeping with the brash, celebrity sport football was becoming, and who succeeded on his own terms. Three decades on from his death, it is a football story that demands to be told.