Athlete Biography

In 1975, a group of amazing women rowed their way to international success and glory, battling sexual prejudice, bureaucracy, and male domination. Among the members of the first international women's crew team - and one of the first women's teams anywhere - were Gail Pearson, the soft-spoken MIT professor who fought to win the political battles necessary for her team to succeed; lead rower Carie Graves, a statuesque bohemian from rural Wisconsin who dropped out of college and later became the most intense rower of the crew; and Lynn Stillman, a tiny 16-year-old, Californian coxswain.

Ryan never envisioned just how far his football career would take him. But bubbling under the surface of his entire NFL career was a collision course between his secret sexuality and his hidden drug use. As injuries mounted and his daily intake of opioids reached a near-lethal level, he wrote his suicide note to his parents and plotted his death. Yet, someone had been watching. A member of the Chiefs organization stepped in, recognizing the signs of drug addiction. Ryan reluctantly sought psychological help, and it was there that he revealed his lifelong secret for the very first time.

In All Heart, adapted from When Nobody Was Watching specifically for younger listeners, Carli tells the full inspiring story of her journey to the top of the soccer world - an honest, action-packed account that takes listeners inside the mind of a hardworking athlete.

This amazing memoir follows the story of Reggie Williams - ex-NFL linebacker, former Disney executive, renaissance man, and the epitome of determination in the face of extreme challenges.

Born in 1888 in what would soon be Oklahoma Territory, Jim Thorpe was a member of the Sac and Fox Nation. After attending the Sac and Fox agency school and Haskell Indian Junior College in Lawrence, Kansas, he transferred to Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania. At Carlisle he led the football team to victories over some of the nation's best college teams—Army, Navy, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Pennsylvania, and Nebraska. In 1912 he participated in the Olympic Games in Stockholm, winning both the decathlon and pentathlon.

Ron Fawcett is a natural-born climber. In 1969, while still at school in his native Yorkshire, he tied into a climbing rope for the first time and was instantly hooked. From that moment on, it seemed nothing else in his life mattered nearly as much as his next vertical fix... Fawcett found the pressures of the limelight too much to bear, and at the end of the 1980s he faded from view. Now, for the first time, he tells his extraordinary story, of how his love of nature and the outdoors developed into a passion for climbing that took him to the top - and almost consumed him.

Jim Thorpe was one of the greatest athletes who ever lived. He played professional football, major league baseball, and won Olympic gold medals in track and field. But his life wasn't an easy one. Born on the Sac and Fox Reservation in 1887, he encountered much family tragedy, and was sent as a young boy to various Indian boarding schools: strict, cold institutions that didn't allow their students to hold on to their Native American languages and traditions.

Girls' athletic participation in school and community sports programs is skyrocketing. Girls now comprise 33 percent of all high school athletes, representing a dramatic increase from four percent who participated in 1971, the year before the enactment of Title IX. You Go, Girl! is a collection of first person insights, thoughts, and stories from successful women in the world of sports.

Diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder, a form of autism, as a toddler, Anthony Ianni wasn't expected to succeed in school or participate in sports, but he had other ideas. As a child, Ianni told anybody who would listen, including head coach Tom Izzo, that he would one day play for the Michigan State Spartans.

From his phenomenal memory, George O. Hallman, Ph.D., describes in fascinating detail what it was like to grow up as a member of the Silent Generation and how a tragic accident on a U.S. Air Force base in Korea led to the loss of his eyesight and the gain of his cherished wife Eileen. With Eileen’s sacrificial support, George became a beloved psychology professor and an extreme marathon runner. George and Eileen raised two sons together and enjoyed a long, happy marriage.

Hoop Dreams Fulfilled is a detailed, first-person account of an athlete's failures and struggles on his way to playing professional basketball. Through in-depth experiences, Tyson Hartnett describes his journey playing basketball starting in fourth grade, through high school, college, and eventually professionally overseas. He profiles his mistakes and failures and his eventual redemption.

From the New York Times best-selling author of The Monopolists, the incredible story of Olympic sailor Kevin Hall and the psychiatric syndrome that makes him believe he stars in a television show of his life.

In full and intricate detail, featuring an amazing cast of characters from the worlds of politics, athletics, entertainment and more, this is the story of how President Theodore Roosevelt helped shepherd in a sports and fitness revolution that forever changed the complexion of the United States.

Following Zion Williamson's record-breaking season at Duke University and his electric NBA debut, basketball fans are already calling him the NBA's Crown Prince, drawing comparisons to all-time greats like Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Kobe Bryant. Now a New Orleans Pelican, he's set out to prove that he truly deserves to be the new King of Basketball. But for all the expectations and accolades, Zion remains a humble, dedicated teammate, and a terrific role model for young basketball fans across the country.

In 2018, Patrick Mahomes stepped onto the gridiron as the new, inexperienced quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs. Just twenty-two-years old at the time, football fans wondered if this young man could live up to lofty expectations. Little did they know, a star was about to be born. By season's end, Patrick threw a whopping fifty touchdowns, the youngest to ever do so, and took his team nearly all the way to the Super Bowl. And the next season, he became the youngest quarterback ever to win Super Bowl MVP!

Throughout over two decades, Tom Brady has led his teams to seven Super Bowl championships and earned three Most Valuable Player Awards, arguably cementing his status as the greatest quarterback of all time. From the moment Tom Brady stepped on the NFL gridiron, pro football was forever changed. A star, a legend, a future hall-of-famer was born. Over the years, he mounted comeback after comeback win, finding the open man for a touchdown just when victory seemed out of reach.

Robert Griffin III exploded onto the NFL scene with a style and flair anything but typical. With a Heisman Trophy on his mantel, RG3 entered professional football in 2012 under a spotlight that glowed beyond his own team, the Washington Redskins. Could the Baylor graduate electrify the NFL as he had the college game? Could he return a fabled franchise to the realm of elite Super Bowl contenders? Ted Kluck deepens the listener’s connection to a man who became the face of a revered NFL franchise before his 23rd birthday.

An inspirational, motivational book that chronicles Michael MacDonald's transformation from a scholarship player at Rutgers' high-level Division I basketball program to a highly successful executive at Xerox and then chairman and CEO of Medifast.

LeBron James has been the face of men's basketball since he first stepped onto the court. In addition to winning four NBA Championships, ten trips to the NBA finals, and two Olympic gold medals, he has become a superstar outside the stadium for speaking up for the Black community. For being an outspoken advocate for underprivileged children and against police brutality, James earned the NAACP President's Award, a prize given to players who demonstrate leadership, sportsmanship, and a commitment to social justice.

Megan Rapinoe has been the face of women's soccer since she first stepped onto the international pitch. In addition to winning an Olympic gold medal, two World Cups, and the FIFA player of the year award, she has become a superstar off the field for her advocacy work. For being an outspoken advocate for equal pay for women and LGBTQIA+ rights, Rapinoe earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. This graphic biography shows readers the moments that have defined her life as a soccer player and an activist.