Best Sports Biographies

Not a 'real' sport, but Mick Foleys book, 'have a nice day' is a must read, hes a former pro wrestler , but tells some epic stories in his own words, from his time starting out jumping off the roof of his own house, to the time his ear got ripped off in a match in germany.

Genuinely funny, and a real honest look at the behind the scenes side of the business.

Crashed and Byrned - biography on Irish Race Car Driver Tommy Byrne - not that big into racing or biographies, but thought this was a good read

I'm not a horse racing fan, although I like horseriding, but this was an incredible story "Declan Murphy’s remarkable survival captured in ‘Centaur’"

recyclops wrote: »

Friday night lights, the original book that the movie then the tv show is based on is easily one of the greatest sports books written, probably due to the fact that its about grass roots level and the whole town was involved it what was a rollercoaster season for the school team

How lucky the writer got when choosing that school in that season should not be understated.

amazing insight into what is basically a secondary school competition

Something similar to this but on the flip side is a book called Stamping Grounds.

It chronicles the Liechtenstein men's soccer team 2002 World Cup qualification campaign.

It's an amazing insight into a how a tiny country operates in international football. I found it really inspiring, even though they were losing every game heavily they were all so proud to be representing their home, Liechtenstein.

Good to see that many of my top picks are on this list. Definitely try Agassi's one ("Open"), brilliant read, well written. Kimmage's "Rough Ride", as well as his Cascarino book are worth a read as well. "The Miracle of Castel do Sangro" was a delight to catch also. "Friday Night Lights" will keep you entertained. A left field choice is "The Damned Utd" by David Peace, focusing on Clough's tenure at Elland Road. "Engage" (again by Paul Kimmage) is superbly written. Nick Hornby's "Fever Pitch" is a must, top drawer writing. Finally, given the day that's in it, Dunphy's "Only a Game?" will draw you in. He has/had a fine writing style, this book brilliantly captures a season in the seventies playing for Millwall.

That should be enough to keep you going for the next while!

A favourite of mine was 'Ben Hogan - An American Life' about the Texan golfer.

From depression era poverty in Dublin, Texas, watching his father shoot himself at age 9, from the rough and tumble early days of caddying as a scrawny kid, to turning pro aged 19 and struggling emotionally and financially with a deeply flawed swing, to resolving to fix that flaw and as a consequence inventing the notion of practice, to modernizing the golf swing by 'digging it out of the dirt', from initially being deeply unpopular with the galleries due to his taciturn nature, the charismatic players instead receiving the plaudits, to almost getting killed in a car crash which stalled his career but his comeback both endearing him to the galleries and going on to win his majors despite some debilitating injuries, including 3 in a single year in 1953. It's a great read about an enigmatic, shy man who was painfully introverted because of his upbringing, who was misunderstood as a man and was only saying hello when he should have been saying goodbye.

Another vote for tiger woods , up there with the best I've read, tyson's undisputed truth is another great read.

The Boy on the Shed by Paul Ferris.
Excellent book telling the story of a young Catholic lad from Lisburn who left in the 80s to join Newcastle United. I dont want to give the story away but it is worth checking out.

A lot of the soccer biographies are ****e but that one and the Sean Fallon story are good