Sportbiografier

Push until it hurts, then push some moreEven by the standards of a sport that requires enormous stamina and capacity for suffering, Jens Voigt is in a class on his own. Beloved by cycling fans for his madcap one-man breakaways as much as his sense of humour and quotable catchphrases, Jens is one of the most popular personalities in cycling.Jens was born near Hamburg, and came up through the East German system before the Wall came down. He got into the national team through the German army, before signing for his first big team. In many ways he is cycling s anti-star; despite arguably spending more time at the front of the Tour de France than any other rider he has only worn the yellow jersey twice as his efforts have always been in the service of others.Jens embodies the best of cycling s qualities loyalty to his team, sacrifice, and devotion to the sport. He says, I m not a head person, I m more of a heart and guts guy. That s how I race. Shut Up Legs is a funny, insightful and entertaining look at the tough realities of professional cycling, told in Jens s trademark irreverent and inimitable style.

'The whole point of a race is to find a winner... I chose to race, so I chose to win.' For 14 years between 1965 and 1978, cyclist Edouard Louis Joseph Merckx simply devoured his rivals, their hopes and their careers. His legacy resides as much in the careers he ruined as the 445 victories - including five Tour de France wins and all the monument races - he amassed in his own right. So dominant had Merckx become by 1973 that he was ordered to stay away from the Tour for the good of the event.Stage 17 of the 1969 Tour de France perfectly illustrates his untouchable brilliance. Already wearing the yellow jersey on the col du Tourmalet, the Tour's most famous peak, Merckx powered clear and rode the last 140 kilometres to the finish-line in jaw-dropping solitude, eight minutes ahead of his nearest competitor.Merckx's era has been called cycling's Golden Age.It was full of memorable characters who, at any other time, would all have gone on to become legends. Yet Merckx's phenomenal career overshadowed them all. How did he achieve such incredible success? And how did his rivals really feel about him? Merckx failed drug tests three times in his career - were they really stitch ups as he claimed? And what of the crash at a track meet in Blois, France that killed Merckx's pacer Fernand Wambst, which Merckx claimed deeply affected him psychologically and physically? Or the attack by a spectator in 1975?Despite his unique achievements, we know little about the Cannibal beyond his victories. This will be the first comprehensive biography of Merckx in English, and will finally expose the truth behind this legendary man.

The Mountains of My Life collects Walter Bonatti's classic writings detailing his exploits on numerous expeditions to different mountains of the world, as well as the real story behind the controversy over the events on K2 that changed his life. Bonatti is one of the greatest mountaineers of all time, and these awe-inspiring writings capture the adventure, audacity and magnitude of his craft.

The first truly definitive biography of Muhammad Ali, the most iconic and significant sporting figure of the twentieth century

He is a five-time winner of the Tour de France and the only man to have won each of the Grand Tours on more than one occasion. Three decades on from his retirement, Hinault remains the last French winner of the Tour de France.

The incredible story of German goalkeeper Lutz Pfannenstiel - the most interesting footballer you've never heard of. A massive bestseller in Germany, this astonishing, fascinating and at times hilarious book relates a football career in which Lutz travelled the world, played for 23 teams on five continents and lived life to the absolute full.

The inspiring story of Dean Karnazes, an internationally recognised endurance athlete who has pushed his body and mind to inconceivable limits.

In this candid and highly anticipated memoir by the GOAT of sports betting, Billy Walters tells the full, larger-than-life story of how he became “the greatest and most controversial sports gambler ever” (ESPN)—and shares the secrets to his fiercely protected betting system with recreational gamblers everywhere.

The raw, fascinating, and uncompromising new memoir from the greatest snooker player of all time, Ronnie O'Sullivan.

From acclaimed journalist Adam Hay-Nicholls, the very first biography of rising star Charles Leclerc, published to mark the start of the 2023 Formula One season. Few of the drivers on the F1 grid have the racing pedigree of Charles Leclerc. Widely regarded as one of the sport's hottest prospects, he was crowned F3 and then F2 champion in back-to-back seasons before he made his F1 debut with Sauber in 2018. Now firmly established as Ferrari's great hope, following in the footsteps of legends Alberto Ascari, Niki Lauda and Michael Schumacher, Leclerc has his eyes set on becoming world champion. Born in Monaco to a family of comparatively modest means, Leclerc remembers playing with toy cars on a friend's balcony as the best drivers in the world whizzed around the Monte Carlo circuit on the streets below. This early experience inspired him to get behind the wheel, encouraged by his father Hervé, and so began his meteoric rise in the sport. Along the way, he lost his father, his godfather and his best friend - all racing drivers - and this gave Leclerc the inner steel to become a winner. Writer Adam Hay-Nicholls, who has spent much of his career in the Formula One paddock, provides the inside track on this rising star, recounting how he has taken the racing world by storm. And as Leclerc's Ferrari is beginning to fire on all cylinders, will he beat his old rival and adversary Max Verstappen to the world title?

Gypsy Queen to the Gypsy King, Tyson Fury's wife Paris reveals the magical highs and epic lows of life with the Heavyweight Boxing World Champion, as she shares their life story and what keeps them strong through the good times - and the bad.

A refreshingly candid and inside look at two-time NBA champion Lamar Odom, who recounts his dizzying fame, hitting rock bottom, and struggling with his demons as he takes the treacherous path of self-discovery to redemption.

Valentino Rossi's announcement of retirement brings down the curtain on an incredible career in the MotoGP motorcycle world championships. With his nine titles, including seven in the premier class, he is widely regarded as the greatest motorcycle racer of all time.

The updated edition of Luca Caioli's brilliant biography of Barcelona star Lionel Messi, now covering the 2019/2020 season.

His truth. His story. In his words.

All Together Now is one of the great sports stories. It's about a group of football fans who were determined to right a wrong. The authorities said they shouldn't try. People in football said it couldn't be done. Robbed of their beloved club, Wimbledon FC, they started again. They had absolutely nothing - no experience of running a club, no players, no manager, nowhere to play. But within nine years they re-formed their team as AFC Wimbledon, rebuilt its community work, won six promotions and fought their way back into the top tiers of the game. En route, they broke records, changed the rules of football and were the subject of Prime Minister's Questions. And now they're back in their spiritual home, Wimbledon, in a brand new stadium. For most of this time Erik Samuelson was finance director and then CEO of the club. He tells the extraordinary inside story of how the most undervalued people in football - the fans - defied the odds to take their club back to the Football League and return home.

The autobiography of Extreme Enduro motorcycling legend Graham Jarvis