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Today We Die a Little: The Rise and Fall of Emil Zatopek, Olympic Legend

Today We Die a Little: The Rise and Fall of Emil Zatopek, Olympic Legend

by Richard Askwith
Hardback
Publication Date: 15/05/2016

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"The definitive biography of one of the greatest, most extraordinary runners and Olympic heroes of all time, from the author of running classic Feet in the Clouds. On the track, his running made him a legend; off it, his charisma and humanity made him a hero. No runner has generated myth like Emil ZBtopek, the Czechoslovakian soldier who revolutionised distance running after World War II. The minutiae of his victories and training methods, the poignant details of his generosity and downfall - all have been endlessly repeated and reinvented, but the full truth never told. ZBtopek won five Olympic medals, set 18 world records, and went undefeated over 10,000 metres for six years. He redefined the boundaries of endurance, training in Army boots, in snow, in sand, in darkness. But his toughness was matched by a spirit of friendship and a joie de vivre that transcended the darkest days of the Cold War. His triumphs put his country on the map, yet when Soviet tanks moved in to crush Czechoslovakia's new freedoms in 1968, ZBtopek paid a heavy price for his brave stance as a champion of 'socialism with a human face'. Expelled from the Army, he was condemned to years of degrading manual labour, far from his home and his adored wife. Rehabilitated two decades later, he was a shadow of the man he had been - and the world had all but forgotten him. Based on extensive research in the Czech Republic and with unparalleled access to ZBtopek's family and friends, particularly his widow, fellow Olympian Dana ZBtopkovB, Today We Die A Little evokes not just an extraordinary man but a glorious age of athletics and a dramatic period in European history. It strips away the myths to tell the complex and deeply moving story of the most inspiring Olympic hero of them all."
ISBN:
9780224100342
9780224100342
Category:
Olympic & Paralympic games
Format:
Hardback
Publication Date:
15-05-2016
Publisher:
Random House UK
Edition:
1st Edition
Pages:
320
Dimensions (mm):
219x140x32mm
Weight:
0.71kg
Richard Askwith

Richard Askwith has been a journalist for more than 35 years. He has written five previous books, including an evocative biography of Emil Zátopek, Today We Die A Little, which was shortlisted in the Cross Sports Book Awards. This marked his first foray into the world of Czechoslovak sport.

His first book, Feet in the Clouds, won Best New Writer at the British Sports Book Awards and the Bill Rollinson Prize for Landscape and Tradition. It was also shortlisted for the William Hill and Boardman Tasker prizes. His 2014 book, Running Free, was shortlisted for the Thwaites-Wainwright Prize.

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