- Published: 21 April 2016
- ISBN: 9781473524088
- Imprint: Vintage Digital
- Format: EBook
- Pages: 480
Today We Die a Little
The Rise and Fall of Emil Zátopek, Olympic Legend
- Published: 21 April 2016
- ISBN: 9781473524088
- Imprint: Vintage Digital
- Format: EBook
- Pages: 480
Reminds us of the pain and the glory behind every victory and the power of sport to bring people together and make history
Martina Navratilova
A powerful look at one of the greatest Olympic champions of all time... Riveting... [Zátopek] had a great heart — he was not just an iconic athlete; he was a peacemaker
Bill Rodgers, Olympic runner and four-times winner of the New York and Boston Marathons
A wonderfully in-depth and often emotionally charged piece of writing
Athletics Weekly
An astonishing achievement... There are few writers as adept at capturing so lyrically the utter and incomprehensible strangeness of distance running... A joy to read
Literary Review
Before Mo Farah and Paula Radcliffe, there was Emil Zátopek - a Czechoslovakian soldier turned long-distance runner turned Cold War victim. His four Olympic golds, 18 world records and Communist party career are all laid bare in this definitive account
Shortlist
A tale from athletics' age of innocence... He was a sporting hero not just for his time but for all time
Spectator
A warm, honest and moving account of one of the greatest sportsmen of all time. Richard Askwith brings to life both the epic triumphs but also the difficulties and complexities of Zatopek's role in Communist Czechoslovakia
Adharanand Finn, author of Running with the Kenyans
[A] rigorous account.
Economist
Of all the new non-fiction books with Olympic connections, this is the finest and most inspiring.
National
A portrait of a fine but flawed human.
Nick Pitt, Sunday Times, Book of the Year
Sport book of the year… A fascinating tale, showing all sides of Zátopek, injecting humanity and humour into a dramatic life
Matt Butler, i, Book of the Year
Terrific
Huw Richards, Guardian
A tremendous read and also a reminder of the lost purity of track and field
Eileen Battersby, The Irish Times