TODAY'S TOP TEN BEST-SELLING SPORTS BOOKS
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1 - Running with the Kenyans
Published by: Faber and Faber
Ever since the Mexico Olympics of 1968, when the athletes of Kenya claimed an unprecedented nine medals, the sporting world has been eager to learn the secrets that seemed to set the runners of one African nation apart from the rest, and turned the likes of Kipchoge Keino and Naftali Temu into legends of the track. Adharanand Finn, a freelance writer and running enthusiast, moved his family to Iten, a small high-altitude town in the Rift Valley that has become a mecca for long-distance runners. Finn ran side by side with Olympic champions and barefoot schoolchildren. This beautifully written book reveals what he learned about Kenya’s runners and their country.
2 - Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 2012
Published by: John Wisden & Co Ltd
First published in 1864 and probably the world’s most famous sports book, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack has been in the hands for the first time of Lawrence Booth, the Daily Mail and former Guardian cricket writer who is its 16th editor. The 149th edition contains everything its readers have come to expect -- coverage of every first-class game in every cricket nation, reports and scorecards for all Tests and ODIs, the Cricketers of the Year awards and some of the finest cricket writing, its trenchant tone set by the Notes by the Editor.
3 - Playfair Cricket Annual 2012
Published by: Headline
The classic pocket companion to the English cricket season, the 65th edition of Playfair reviews England's triumphant 2011 home Test series against Sri Lanka and India, as well as their matches against India and Pakistan on tour this winter. The book is packed with essential information to follow events on the field, with unrivalled up-to-the-minute statistical detail on all first-class players registered in the UK at the time of press, plus fixture lists for the coming season.
4 - Born to Run: The Hidden Tribe, the Ultra-Runners, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
Published by: Profile Books
How an American former war correspondent with a love of running discovered a remote Mexican tribe, the Tarahumara, whose frugal, healthy diet was undermined somewhat by a love of grain alcohol but who achieved longevity through running extreme distances, barefoot, without the need for training schedules or recovery regimes. He finds them to be capable of running as fast and as far as the best prepared, most finely tuned marathon runners of the developed world and dreams of seeing them compete in the ‘greatest race’ of the title.
5 - The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership
Published by: Portfolio
A posthumous leadership guide by the acclaimed head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, this compendium of Bill Walsh's philosophy was compiled by his son and author Jamison from interviews and private notes. Interspersed with the coach–turned–leadership guru's insights into management are pieces by football greats, such as Joe Montana and Randy Cross, and former colleagues. The Walsh philosophy prizes people above all and focuses on core values, principles and ideals. Enlightening, informative and engaging, it has been hailed as a must-read for executives and managers at every level.
6 - A Life Without Limits
Published by: Constable
Chrissie Wellington, a former civil servant and hobbyist jogger, a complex character whose insecurities as a young woman led her to develop eating disorders, ran her first marathon 10 years ago and surprised herself by completing the course in three hours and eight minutes. She tells a gripping and deeply human story of how ultimately she quit her job to train full time as a triathlete, became world champion within a year and is currently Ironman Triathlon world champion, the fastest on the planet for an event that comprises a 2.4-mile swim, an 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile marathon run.
7 - Barca: The Making of the Greatest Team in the World
Published by: BackPage Press
You might have thought that by now the full story of the world’s best football team must have been told but Spain-based British journalist Graham Hunter was so thorough in his research that he revealed things that even die-hard fans of the Blaugrana didn’t know. Hunter traces the story back from the 2011 Champions League final at Wembley to discover the people and events that played a part in the creation of a team that had its beginnings in the late 1980s, when Johan Cruyff was their coach, and offers some brilliant insights into the mind of their soon-to-be former coach, the extraordinary Pep Guardiola.
8 - Merckx: Half Man, Half Bike
Published by: Yellow Jersey
It says something about Eddy Merckx that Lance Armstrong, who won the Tour de France a record seven times, amassed fewer than a hundred career victories compared with 445 by the obsessive Belgian in professional races alone. His career brought outstanding success but also personal tragedy, horrific injury and a doping controversy, and masked a surprising level of insecurity. William Fotheringham, the Guardian cycling writer, speaks to those who watched and knew Merckx to produce the definitive biography.
9 - Strong Woman: Ambition, Grit and a Great Pair of Heels
Published by: Collins
Karren Brady did not become Britain’s best-known businesswoman by being a pussycat and her autobiography reveals she had a hard-nosed streak even when she was a child. When she entered the world of work, it enabled her to form the partnership with David Sullivan that led her to become managing director of Birmingham City at the age of 23. Lord Sugar, with whom she worked on TV show The Apprentice says: ‘Karren’s story will be an inspiration to women everywhere.’
10 - The Big Miss: My Years Coaching Tiger Woods
Published by: Crown Archetypes
Hank Haney was swing coach to Tiger Woods for six years until their relationship broke down acrimoniously in 2010. During those years the supremely gifted golfer collected six major championships only to fall from grace over a series of scandals in his personal life. Haney had the chance to observe Woods in nearly every circumstance: at tournaments, on the practice range, over meals, with his wife, Elin, and relaxing with friends. This is his candid account of what he saw.
As listed by amazon.co.uk on April 30, 2012
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