Cricket fans everywhere will know of Len Hutton [1916-90] who as an opening batsman, enjoyed a stellar career with Yorkshire and England before and after the Second World War. Born into a family of cricketers in Fulneck, near Bradford, Hutton played the game as a schoolboy and joined Pudsey St Lawrence CC as a junior member, aged 12. He soon became established at the club and by the time he reached his 16th birthday, he was a regular first team player. As Hutton's reputation grew he was introduced into County cricket with Yorkshire where he began quietly in the second team. His early experiences added to coaching from Yorkshire's staff brought Hutton, aged 20, into Yorkshire's first team as the County's opening batsman. Never flamboyant but always defensively sound, Hutton was one of the best batsmen in the world and in 1938 at the Oval, showed his brilliance in the last Test of an Ashes series. His score of 364 was a monumental achievement and remained the highest Test innings for twenty years. When serving in the Army in the Second World War, Hutton fractured his left arm in an accident in a gymnasium. The injury never healed properly and despite several operations, the arm settled at about two inches shorter than his right arm. Despite the injury Hutton returned to First Class cricket where his Test and County career culminated in his appointment as captain of England, the first modern professional cricketer to achieve that honour. After victory in the Ashes series of 1953, Hutton took a young party to Australia to defend them and, with the help of the devastating pace attack of Tyson and Statham, emerged victorious. Hutton retired in 1956 and was knighted in the same year. This excellent biography was written with the full cooperation of the subject and is now reissued with more illustrations, to commemorate the centenary of Len Hutton's birth.

This the the first biography ever written on Marvin Hart, the forgotten heavyweight champion from the South. Hart gained popularity as a middleweight and light-heavyweight in the Louisville, Kentucky area before moving up to heavyweight and defeating the highly touted top contender Jack Johnson. Hart then won the vacant world's heavyweight championship in a fight to the finish against Jack Root. Like other books in Pollack's "In the Ring" series, this book is meticulously researched using next-day local primary source materials, and details Hart's boxing career.

Steve Cauthen commenced his 14-year 'English Odyssey' in April 1979. The erstwhile 'Kentucky Kid' had taken American racing by storm. A champion jockey at 17 and a Triple Crown winner at 18, the teenage prodigy became a bona fide celebrity but a slump of 110 consecutive losers saw him cross the Atlantic seeking to resurrect his career. Within weeks of his arrival 'The Kid' won an English Classic, the 2000 Guineas. He'd go on to become the only jockey to win both the Derby and the Kentucky Derby (plus those of Ireland, France and Italy); be the most recent jockey to win an English Triple Crown courtesy of Oh So Sharp in 1985; and secure three jockeys' championships - making him the only man to win titles in both America and England. Moreover, Cauthen was a supreme stylist who transformed English race-riding: his streamlined American toe-in-the-iron seat and clock-in-the-head judgement of pace sparking widespread imitation. The list of household names benefiting from his sublime talents are legion and this most articulate of jockeys recalls every one of them in his own inimitable style along with all the attendant highs and lows in this first complete retelling of his 'English Odyssey'.

This volume provides a cumulative index to the highly acclaimed multi-volume Biographical Dictionary of American Sports, listing all items alphabetically for the first five volumes, published from 1987 to 1992. The five volumes, classified by sport, provide comprehensive biographical information on over 2,700 of the nation's most extraordinary sports figures. A majority of the index applies to baseball, football, and basketball entries, but other sports covered include auto racing, golf, harness and thoroughbred racing, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, tennis, track and field, bowling, boxing, gymnastics, ice hockey, figure and speed skating, swimming and diving, weight lifting, and wrestling. Five letter classifications indicate the volume where particulars can be located, (e.g.: B: Baseball volume, F: Football volume, I: Basketball and other Indoor Sports, O: Outdoor Sports volume, S: Supplement volume). This index will save users considerable time.

The story of the Springboks 2019 Rugby World Cup victory is one of the most inspiring in South African sporting history.

It is about how two men – coach Rassie Erasmus and captain Siya Kolisi – led a team of warriors into battle and conquered the world when inequality and division are still undeniable realities in South African society. When the Boks won the 2007 World Cup final, they did so with 20 white players in their match-day squad of 22.

In 2019, there were five black Africans in their starting line-up for the Yokohama final and the images of Kolisi lifting the Webb Ellis Cup will be replayed forever.

None of this seemed possible in 2017 when the Boks had reached an all-time low. They had slipped to No 7 in the world and had lost the faith of the rugby-loving public. Erasmus came in with just 18 months to prepare for the competition.

Sports writer Lloyd Burnard takes the reader on a thrilling journey from the time when no-one gave the Boks a chance of winning, to the delirious victory tour. He covers the key roles played by Erasmus and Kolisi, and their special relationship. There are ups and downs en route to victory: the first signs of self-belief when they beat the All Blacks in Wellington, Kolisi’s injury, the fall of Aphiwe Dyantyi when he was caught with banned substances in his system, and the Langebaan incident involving Eben Etzebeth that threatened to derail the team.

Drugs in professional sports. Today''s news? Not to the authors who take you behind the scenes into the backrooms, the board rooms and the high perches of politics where the quest for a state''s profit often outweighs giving the public a fair return for their loyalty and support. This is not your average sports story. It delves into the experiences of two people who defied fierce opposition and personal threat to do the right thing in the management of Thoroughbred Racing and Professional Hockey and in the evaluating and negotiating of Pro Baseball and Football teams. We are not born with integrity. It is the product of our pasts, how we meet life''s challenges, and in our case, the deep faith which gave us the courage to confront our enemies and realize our goals. Biographical in form, you will relive the author''s early years and travel the diverse paths their lives took. You may often ponder how this successful partnership evolved, Man/Woman. Catholic/Jew. Poor Boy/Rich Girl. New England Newspaper columnist/ New York entertainment writer. Running sports facilities, hosting thousands of patrons daily at an arena, stadium or paying field was a unique challenge. Vin Bartimo had the prime responsibility for the action, Roz Muller was the champion of the fans. Together, they made winners of losing entities, shared their largesse with the communities in which they operated and gave the public what they wanted and deserved.

Steve Williams, arguably the greatest caddie in golf history, teams up with renowned golf journalist Evin Priest to give his definitive account of his 12-year partnership with the legendary Tiger Woods, sharing personal, never-before-told moments of their friendship on and off the course.

When Tiger Woods went on an extraordinary majors run between 1999 and 2008, one man stood at his side: his caddie Steve Williams. Together Steve and Tiger dominated the PGA Tour and won an astonishing 13 major championships, their sights set on breaking Jack Nicklaus’s record 18 majors. Before they could overtake Nicklaus, however, their partnership ended abruptly, and a 12-year period without talking began. Years later, the two reconnected.

Steve, with PGA Tour journalist Evin Priest, reflects fondly on his years as Tiger’s caddie and their relentless pursuit of greatness. He revisits all their best moments, from Tiger’s iconic shot on the 16th hole at the 2005 Masters to the famed Tiger Slam of 2000 and 2001, to his against-the-odds victory on a broken leg at the 2008 US Open. Steve goes behind the scenes of their on-course success and shows their friendship off the course, like Tiger caddying for Steve on his wedding day and Tiger giving a heartfelt best man speech. Steve also shares fascinating, never-before-seen photos and ephemera.

Together We Roared offers an inside look at what it is like to ride alongside greatness and is a heartfelt ode to the friendship that produced one of the winningest duos in golf history.

Author Cornel Vena was just a teenager when World War II ended, changing life in the tiny Transylvanian village of his childhood forever. A ruthless Bolshevik army swarmed over the land, and his family faced an uncertain future living under a communist regime. But it soon became clear that the country was keen to promote its athletic prowess on an international stage, offering a glimmer of hope to the young man. If Cornel could shoot, ride, fence, run, and swim well enough, he might be able to find freedom. Success in the sporting arena offered better conditions for athletes and priceless opportunities to escape the constraints of communism; however, the athletes who survived the intense training regimen could not fail. An entire country counted on them to succeed, and losing was not tolerated. The weak would be punished, and those who succeeded would be rewarded. Join Cornel as he prepares to confront superhuman physical challenges in this inspiring true story of one man's quest for freedom, set against the backdrop of the 1956 Olympic Games. Romanians, history students and athletes alike will find important lessons that continue to resonate today in "Barbed Circles: The Perfect Score."

*NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER* From the #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of Tiger Woods comes the definitive inside story of the New England Patriots--the greatest sports dynasty of the 21st century. It's easy to forget that the New England Patriots were once the laughingstock of the NFL, a nearly bankrupt team that had never won a championship and was on the brink of moving to St. Louis. Everything changed in 1994, when Robert Kraft acquired the franchise and soon brought on board head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady. Since then, the Patriots have become a juggernaut, making ten trips to the Super Bowl, winning six of them, and emerging as one of the most valuable sports franchises in the world. How was the Patriots dynasty built? And how did it last for two decades? In The Dynasty, acclaimed journalist Jeff Benedict provides richly reported answers in a sweeping account based on exclusive interviews with more than two hundred insiders--including team executives, coaches, players, players' wives, team doctors, lawyers, and more--as well as never-before-seen recordings, documents, and electronic communications. Through his exhaustive research, Benedict uncovers surprising new details about the inner workings of a team notorious for its secrecy. He puts us in the room as Robert Kraft outmaneuvers a legion of lawyers and investors to buy the team. We listen in on the phone call when the greatest trade ever made--Bill Belichick for a first-round draft choice--is negotiated. And we look over the shoulder of forty-year-old Tom Brady as a surgeon operates on his throwing hand on the eve of the AFC Championship Game in 2018. But the portrait that emerges in The Dynasty is more rewarding than new details alone. By tracing the team's epic run through the perspectives of Kraft, Belichick, and Brady--each of whom was interviewed for the book--the author provides a wealth of new insight into the complex human beings most responsible for the Patriots' success. The result is an intimate portrait that captures the human drama of the dynasty's three key characters while also revealing the secrets behind their success. "The Dynasty is...[a] masterpiece...It's a relationship book, it's a football book, it's a business book...you'll just eat up these stories" (Colin Cowherd).

Brian Kinchen was a thirty-eight-year-old father of four and seventh-grade Bible teacher whose professional football career had been over for three years when he received the call of a lifetime. The New England Patriots needed him to fill in for their injured long snapper for the remainder of the 2003 season and the playoffs. In the hands of Pulitzer Prize-winner Jeffrey Marx, Brian's remarkable true story becomes a celebration of the resilience of the human spirit. For all lovers of the game of football, "The Long Snapper" reveals the grit and glory of America's favorite sport.

When he walked off the field in August 1995, having been prematurely substituted in a live televised football match at the peak of his career, Gora knew it had run its course. He slipped off the captain's armband and cut a frustrated figure as he walked off. The flame had been put out. What happened in the next few moments, shocked his family, friends, and the football world. It changed his life forever. Forced to make drastic changes, he embarked on a journey of triumph and tragedy with his young family, with help from people at every stage who restored his faith and belief in himself.

Born and raised in Vereeniging, to a mixed raced couple, in a little town called Roshnee in 1966, his football journey crisscrossed with his love for literature, education, and people who would see him play his football and teach at schools that he couldn't have imagined growing up.

This is the remarkable journey of someone who always stood up for what he believed was right and sometimes suffered for it. Written as a collection of memoirs, it captures Gora's devotion to family, community, and a brand of people-centred leadership that has made him a role model in all his spheres of influence.

The sixth volume of the "Biographical Dictionary of American Sports," this supplement provides biographies for 616 athletes, coaches, managers, officials, administrators, writers, and broadcasters who have played an active role in American sports or helped to promote them. Most of the entries are from team sports, including baseball (202), football (181), and basketball (58). Some entries treat individual sports, including track and field (29), golf (14), and tennis and other racquet sports (16). Other sports covered include ice hockey, horse racing, boxing, swimming, bowling, skating, shooting, wrestling, skiing, and cycling. Thirty women athletes are included.

Born with 'learning difficulties' and all but abandoned by his schools, Neil went on to become kit man to Stoke City FC. Lou Macari, the club's then manager, described him as 'my best-ever signing'. But who is Neil Baldwin? As a boy in a working-class part of the Potteries in the fifties and sixties, the education system wrote him off. But Neil, who believes you can just 'get things by asking for them', knows his late Mum wanted him to have a happy life, and it's his duty to her to have one. So he does. At Keele University, they hold regular celebrations and services for the decades he's been a friend to the students, academics and vice-chancellors; but he's never been a student, a teacher, or had any formal connection with the place. At Stoke City Football Club, he's 'more famous than the players'. He's even got a dialogue going with the Queen - though that one's still a little one-sided. This is the inspiring, moving and at times hysterically funny story of Neil Baldwin's marvellous life.

Phil shares his personal ecstasy and anguish in learning the lessons of life through wrestling. The vivid and intimate descriptions of his hilarious and sometimes terrifying experiences keep you wanting to read more about his life.

The Tiger Woods of his day, legendary professional golfer HARRY VARDON (1870-1937), from Jersey in the Channel Islands, was the sport's first superstar. He won six British Open championships-a record that stands to this day-and was the first British golfer to win the U.S. Open. Some consider him the best player in the history of the game. In this classic work of sports literature, Vardon offers his stupendous and invaluable insight into the game. Part biographical, part instructional, part inspirational, Vardon's advice covers: the makings of a player the mistakes of the beginner the choice and care of clubs "concerning caddies" the pleasure of a good drive individuality in putting the proper attitude toward your opponents "golf for ladies" tips for the left-handed player and much more. First published in 1904, this beautiful replica edition features all of the essential original diagrams and photographs. It will delight and encourage the modern golfer, no matter how seriously-or lightheartedly-one takes the game.

Two of the most prominent and celebrated athletes in the world, Marvelous Marvin Hagler and Sugar Ray Leonard came together to contest the $100million SuperFight on April 6, 1987 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. From Frank Sinatra to U2, Joan Collins to Whoopi Goldberg, the stars were drawn to ringside by the huge box-office appeal of the blue-collar, dominant world middleweight champion facing his nemesis, the charismatic and flamboyant Sugar Ray, who was coming out of virtually five years of retirement. Drawing on his deep reservoir of nerve, outstanding technique and a strategy which Budd Schulberg - who provided Marlon Brando with the immortal line, 'I coulda been a contender' - called a compound optical illusion, Leonard won on points. It was boxing's greatest comeback, but to this day the judges' decision remains bitterly contested and not merely by the protagonists. But the story of The SuperFight is much more than the story of the fight, for it details two remarkable lives, the demons that drove both men and the formidable challenges they overcame inside and outside the ring. Hagler grew up in the Newark, New Jersey ghetto of Central Ward, where a riot/rebellion rooted in racism claimed the lives of 26 people, injured 1,000 more and, to the young teenager, was "like the end of the world". Fuelled by anger, he climbed to the top of his domain and ruled for seven years as champion, one of the most accomplished in boxing's annals. Leonard was an Olympic gold medallist and all-American hero whose career was cut short by a detached retina after he became the world welterweight king. He was Muhammad Ali's gifted and anointed successor but he succumbed to alcohol and drug abuse and for years was tormented by a secret - the sexual abuse he endured as an amateur boxer by a trusted coach. As provocative and polarising in its own way as Ali's defining rivalry with Joe Frazier, this is the story of The SuperFight, of Marvin Hagler and Ray Leonard and a fierce fire that still burns.