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The Bolt Supremacy
The Bolt Supremacy
Nov 7, 2024 4:57 AM

Author:Richard Moore

The Bolt Supremacy

Beijing 2008, the 100 metres final: Usain Bolt slows down, beats his chest, metres clear of his nearest rival, his face filled with the euphoria of a young man utterly in thrall to his extraordinary physical talent. It is one of the greatest sporting moments. It is just the beginning.

Of the ten fastest 100-metres times in history, eight belong to Jamaicans. How is it that a small Caribbean island has come to almost totally dominate the men’s and women’s sprint events?

The Bolt Supremacy opens the doors to a community where sprinting permeates conversations and interactions; where the high school championships are watched by 35,000 screaming fans; where identity, success and status are forged on the track, and where making it is a pass to a world of adoration and lucrative contracts.

In such a society there can be the incentive for some to cheat. There are those who attribute Jamaican success to something beyond talent and hard work. Award-winning writer Richard Moore doesn’t shy away from difficult questions as he travels the length of this beguiling country speaking to anti-doping agencies, scientists and sceptics as well as to coaches, gurus, superstar athletes and the young guns desperate to become the next big thing. Peeling back the layers, Moore finally reveals the secrets of Usain Bolt and the Jamaican sprint factory.

Reviews

Excellent

—— The Times

Absorbing

—— Richard Williams , Guardian

Entertaining and lively. Moore is an open-minded and engaging writer who's willing to hear his interviewees out. Because maybe there is something in the yams, and maybe we can all still enjoy the dream.

—— Esquire

A fascinating account of how a Caribbean island came to rule the world in the art and science of running very fast indeed

—— Chris Maume , Independent

Compelling… thoughtful and wide-ranging… leaves you feeling optimistic

—— Literary Review

What this book does is capture the spirit of the sport in Jamaica… Moore clearly reveled in this grass roots exuberance and it is hard, reading this book, not to do so too

—— Oliver Poole , Independent On Sunday

Lister has expanded the narrative of West Indies cricket by using the footage not broadcast by director Stevan Riley and interviewing the fans, players and their families, to document a history that lays claim to be the "definitive story of the greatest team sport has ever known"

—— Nicholas Hogg , ESPN

Moore is meticulous and entertaining

—— GB , The Scotsman

A bloody funny read

—— Adam Peacock, Fox Sports

Squires’ opening lines sets the tone for a lively, tongue-in-cheek history of the beautiful game, accompanied by some excellent illustrations.

—— Dorset Echo

This is an absolute landmark of football literature – worthy of the same status as Football Grounds of Europe , Inverting the Pyramid and All Played Out . This is not least because of the mind boggling amount of work involved – all the more prodigious given that Squires is a regular provider of comic strips for The Guardian . . . this is a genuinely funny book

—— The Two Unfortunates

[Illustrated History of Football] is the funniest football tome since Viz's Billy the Fish Football Yearbook, published 26 years earlier.

—— Esquire

A thoughtful paean…to a beautiful game.

—— Claire Allfree , Metro, Book of the Year

Calling it a 'proven formula' is not to take anything away from Moore's achievements, both in completing an incredible cycling journey, and then writing another entertaining book about it: to have done both three times is impressive. To keep to the successful formula, Moore first needs another ridiculous challenge as the theme of his journey: check. Then he must use wholly inappropriate equipment: check. Try to avoid any fitness training before the journey: check. Make sure that there are numerous challenges and obstacles to overcome along the way to provide amusing anecdotes: check. Finally, make sure that you can write in an engaging and humorous style: check… Tim Moore does it again, enhancing his reputation as one of the best exponents of the cycling travelogue

—— Richard Peploe , Road.cc

Tim Moore is a serial cyclist who loves to do things the hard way… His blackly comic account of his adventures will convince you that extreme cycling is best appreciated in anecdotal form

—— Jane Shilling , Daily Mail

Filled with laugh-out-loud scenes and witty comments, alongside serious reflections on the consequences of the Communist dream and reminders of how disparate Europe still remains, this book was difficult to put down

—— Rhiannon Roy , Time & Leisure

He is quite, quite bonkers - and very funny

—— The Bookseller

Brilliant, bruising

—— Donal Ryan , Sunday Independent

This is so much more than the story of their journey – it’s a superbly written, endlessly fascinating book encompassing history, geology, landscape, family memories, wars experienced and lives well lived.

—— Choice Magazine

One of the most unexpected and enjoyable reads of 2016… The book fizzes erudition and is delightfully leavened by the companionship of his aged and doughty father.

—— Guardian, Readers' Book of the Year

A very funny book - not jovial in the post-Wodehouse Boris mode but something more taught and Caledonian... The politician in Stewart never had a chance against the writer, a reliable adversary of consensus and cant.

—— Minoo Dinshaw , Oldie

Beautiful, evocative, and wise.

—— Malcolm Forbes , Star Tribune

The Marches is a transporting work from a powerful and original writer.

—— Harvard Press

This beautifully written account is a moving memoir of tales from along the route but also reflections on life and relationships – father and son on this their last journey together.

—— Prospect

Rory Stewart is one of the most talented men of our era. The Marches takes us from Rory’s constituency to his family house is an attempt to understand the bloody history of the Scottish borders… The quest is fascinating even if the answers are elusive.

—— Bruce Anderson , Spectator

As the book unfurls, the march along the marches turns into a eulogy to his father, part memoir, part biography, always a love story. It also contains one of the most unflinching, moving descriptions of death I have read.

—— Melanie Reid , The Times

This beautifully written book is a haunting reflection of identity and our relationships with the people and places we love.

—— Jane Shilling , Daily Mail

Stewart provides much food for thought about how we value our past history

—— Susannah Law , Scottish Field
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