Reid's Doped wins William Hill Sports Book of the Year

A true tale about one of the biggest doping scandals in British horseracing history—Doped (Racing Post)—has won the £25,000 William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award for 2013.

Journalist and lifelong racing enthusiast Jamie Reid was commended by the judges for his “fascinating” account of an “alarmingly cynical and corrupt world” uncovered in March 1962 when police were alerted to a well-organised band of racecourse criminals, backed by London gangsters.

William Hill spokesman Graham Sharpe said the book was “perfectly researched paced and plotted” while “unravelling probably the most shocking, cynical, sustained attempt to dope—sometimes fatally— innocent racehorses and endanger jockeys for personal gain, to come to light in the 500-year history of the sport of Kings, Queens and commoners.”

Reid beat off stiff competition from other shortlisted authors including journalist David Walsh with his book Seven Deadly Sins (Simon & Schuster), about his 12-year pursuit of the truth behind cyclist Lance Armstrong’s “too good to be true” performances. Other shortlisted titles were I Am Zlatan Ibrahimovic, published by Penguin and written by David Lagercrantz and Ruth Urbom; The Boys in The Boat by Daniel James Brown (Macmillan); The Sports Gene by David Epstein (Yellow Jersey Press); and Bookie Gambler Fixer Spy by Ed Hawkins (Bloomsbury).

The winner was announced live at an event at The Hospital Club in London last night (27th November) and broadcast live on BBC Radio 4.

The William Hill Sports Book of the Year is now celebrating its 25th year. Shortlisted authors received £3,000 cash, a leather-bound copy of their book, and a free £1,000 bet, while longlisted authors received a free £500 bet and a certificate.