Beryl - Winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2022: In Search of Britain's Greatest Athlete, Beryl Burton

(Paperback, Main)

Available Formats

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Winner for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2022

WINNER OF THE TIMES SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2022

A FINANCIAL TIMES BEST SPORTS BOOK OF 2022

A WATERSTONES BEST SPORTS BOOK OF 2022

'A magnificent book' - Maxine Peake

Cyclist Beryl Burton dominated her sport much as her male contemporary Eddy Merckx, with a longevity that surpasses sporting legends like Muhammad Ali and Serena Williams. Practically invincible in time trials, Burton - also known as BB - finished as Best All-Rounder for 25 years and broke the record for the '12-hour' endurance race; an achievement unrivalled to this day. She won multiple world titles, but her achievements were limited by discrimination from the cycling authorities. Yet she carried on winning, beating men and - infamously - competing against her own daughter, whilst working full-time on a Yorkshire farm and running a household.

With previously unseen material and through extensive interviews with family, friends, rivals and fellow sporting giants, Jeremy Wilson peels back the layers to reveal one of the most overlooked, yet compelling characters in cycling history.

Reviews

'The least publicised, least rewarded great woman athlete ever to be disregarded by her own country.' - The Times

'The subtitle may not even be hyperbolic. Beryl Burton, an almost forgotten amateur cyclist who worked on a rhubarb farm in Yorkshire, was not simply the undisputed ruler of British women's cycling for 25 years, but also broke the men's record in a 12-hour time trial. Jeremy Wilson retrieves an astonishing life.' - Simon Kuper

'To my mortification, I had not heard of Beryl Burton, so pretty much all the material in this was new to me. The subtitle - In Search of Britain's Greatest Athlete - is not hyperbolic: Burton dominated cycling, that most unforgiving of sports, in the 1960s, winning world championships on the road and the track, in 1967 setting a record for the 12-hour time trial (277.25 miles!) not beaten by a man for another two years. A phenomenon.' - Robert Crampton

'An incredible story about one of the greatest cyclists of all time' - Irish Times

'Britain's greatest ever cyclist is given the literary treatment she so richly deserves in Wilson's rigorously researched biography of the complex and enigmatic Beryl Burton.' - Waterstones Best Books of 2022

Author Bio

Jeremy Wilson is the Chief Sports Reporter for the Daily Telegraph. He was voted investigative sports reporter and national journalist of the year for his work on football and dementia. His sports writing was again highly commended in 2021 at both the British Press Awards and the British Journalism Awards. A lifelong club cyclist, he worked previously as a sports journalist for the Guardian.