I spend a lot of my time reading sports pieces and appreciate when someone else's words about a real life athlete touches my heart or makes me feel something. In sports, there are so many stories out there that seem so unbelievable. I am a boxing writer, and one of the reasons I love the sport so much has nothing to do with the war that is waged inside of the ring on any given night, but the stories of how they got there. Here are a couple of my favorite sports stories I have read over the years... Focus: Post links to some of your favorite sports pieces, and possibly a short summary on what they are about.[/b] Shadow Boxing: Muhammad Ali fought fifty men. Only one disappeared - This is a lengthy read about a search for a fighter named Jimmy Robinson, who fought Muhammad Ali on his way up when he was known as Cassius Clay. He is the only Ali opponent who had no trackable history. Very good read. Adrift in a Sea of Choices by Gary Smith for the October 1985 issue of Sports Illustrated. A really good portrait of former two-division world champion Alexis Arguello, who died earlier this year, supposedly by suicide. Another lengthy read but well worth your time.
I'm sure just about everyone here is familiar with Hunter S. Thompson and that he frequently wrote about sports. I haven't read much of his more recent sport writing, but I like his sport related essays in The Great Shark Hunt. The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved is a classic.
Transformation. Basically an in-depth look at the transformation of Andre Agassi, from brash, arrogant kid to the man he is today. His autobiography, Open, is also one hell of a read.
It may be too old of a book to be a relevant read to most people here, but Ball Four by Jim Boutan should be a must read by anyone interested in baseball. If nothing else it will show you a sports world before free agency and million dollar contracts.
I read this book when I was thirteen, I borrowed it from my brother and it blew me away. Beaver shooting is the best phrase to ever exist.
http://www.gq.com/sports/profiles/201002/marvin-harrison This is a well-written and researched article from GQ about the Marvin Harrison shooting case and the confusion surrounding it.
Dykstra's business: a bed of 'Nails' ESPN article about Lenny Dykstra. Interesting. Bizarre. As far as ESPN goes, it's pretty impressive.