Kings, Queens & Four-legged Athletes by Martin Smith

Kings, Queens & Four-legged Athletes by Martin Smith

It is the Sport of Kings. And Queens. And Lords and their Ladies. It is also the sport of knaves and bounders, spivs and cheats. Horse racing, moreover, is the sport of the ordinary man: from housewives with their 50p on whichever horse Lester is riding in the Derby, to anyone who has entered the office Grand National sweepstake. It is a massive commercial industry with a multi-million pound turnover in betting, breeding and prize-money. Yet it is a fun day out, whether it be the splendour of Royal Ascot, Epsom dolled up for the Derby, Cheltenham rocking to the Irish enjoying 'the craic', or the homeliness of the most humble country course. The names of its best-known exponents have become engrained in the nation's consciousness: who has never heard of Red Rum, Best Mate, Shergar, Arkle, Desert Orchid, Nijinsky, or Richards, Winter, Piggott, Francome, Dettori or McCoy? And who has not rooted for one or all of them when they have lined up in the Derby, Grand National or Cheltenham Gold Cup? The Sport of Kings, Queens & Four-Legged Athletes relives racing's greatest moments through the passion and authority of the back pages' true thoroughbreds: John Oaksey, Brough Scott, J.A. McGrath, Marcus Armytage, Peter Scott, Paul Hayward, the anonymous Hotspurs and Marlboroughs, and jockeys Tony McCoy and Frankie Dettori, offering their tips for the day. If you love the Sport of Kings, and its four-legged athletes, then The Telegraph Book of Horse Racing is a veritable treasure trove.

'A veritable treasure trove, the book covers the splendour of Royal Ascot and the Derby..through to the homeliness of the most humble country course' Daily Telegraph 'Martin Smith relives horse racing's greatest moments in this wonderful book' Manchester Evening News 'Anthology of outstanding writing' Blackpool Gazette

Martin Smith was assistant sports editor of the Telegraph for many years. He has edited previous Telegraph anthologies for Aurum on the Tour de France, Formula One, Wimbledon, horse racing and cricket letters. He lives in Bedfordshire.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781845136109
ISBN 10	1845136101
Title	Kings, Queens & Four-legged Athletes
Author	Martin Smith
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Quarto Publishing PLC
Year published	2011-02-25
Number of pages	384
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable