Holding, Burrow and Brown among Sunday Times Sports Book Awards 2022 winners

Michael Holding took away two awards at the Sunday Times Sports Book Awards ceremony, including Overall Sports Book of the Year, with other winners including David Walsh, Rob Burrow, Marcus Rashford and Danielle Brown.

Holding, the Jamaican former cricketer and Sky Sports cricket presenter, also won the Pinsent Masons Sports Book Writing of the Year award as well as the Overall Sports Book of the Year for Why We Kneel, How We Rise (Simon & Schuster). The ceremony was held at the Kia Oval in London on 26th May.

Holding’s book, born out of the response to his comments on racism when broadcasting on Sky Sports, previously also won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2021 prize. Through the prism of sport and conversations with its legends including Usain Bolt, Adam Goodes, Thierry Henry and Michael Johnson, Holding explains how racism dehumanises people.

It was judged to be the outstanding book in its category by a panel including Olympic gold medallist Christine Ohuruogu, BBC La Liga correspondent Guillem Balague, ITV and BT Sport host Seema Jaswal, Sky Sports Boxing’s Adam Smith, ex-European Rugby chairman Simon Halliday and Olympic rowing silver medallist Annie Vernon. 

Ohuruogu said: “Michael Holding’s book has received universal recognition after winning the William Hill Award and is a much deserving winner.”

Speaking from his home in the Cayman Islands, Holding said: “I cannot really say how delighted I am to win these awards. It just shows that people believe in the subject of this book. Hopefully, people will take it on board and it will do the job that I am hoping it will – bring everyone together and have a better world.” 

Other winners on the night included David Walsh, taking home Best Sports Book of the 20th Century for Seven Deadly Sins (Simon & Schuster) and Rob Burrow, who won the Best Sports Autobiography of the Year Award for Too Many Reasons to Live (Macmillan). 

Children’s Sports Book of the Year, presented in partnership with the National Literacy Trust, was shared by former Arsenal footballer and football pundit Ian Wright who teamed up with Musa Okwonga to write Striking Out (Scholastic), and Danielle Brown for Run Like a Girl (Button Books).

The full list of winners:

The Sunday Times Autobiography of the Year 

Too Many Reasons to Live, Rob Burrow (Macmillan) 

Children’s Sports Book of the Year, in association with the National Literacy Trust

Run Like a Girl, Danielle Brown (Button Books) and Striking Out, Ian Wright, Musa Okwonga & illustrated by Benjamin Wachenje (Scholastic) 

The Heartaches’ Cricket Book of the Year

Who Only Cricket Know, David Woodhouse (Fairfield Books) 

Cycling Book of the Year

Desire, Discrimination, Determination – Black Champions in Cycling, Dr Marlon Moncrieffe (Rapha) 

Illustrated Book of the Year

Toon In!, Michael Payne (Vision Sports Publishing) 

Fitzdares International Autobiography of the Year

Always Believe, Olivier Giroud with Dominique Rouch (Pitch Publishing) 

Arbuthnot Latham Rugby Book of the Year, in association with The Rugby Union Writers’ Club

The Flying Prince, Hugh Godwin (Hodder & Stoughton) 

Sports Entertainment Book of the Year

The Champ & The Chump, James McNicholas (Headline) 

Sports Performance Book of the Year

Stronger, Poorna Bell (Bluebird) 

Pinsent Masons Sports Writing Award

Why We Kneel, How We Rise, Michael Holding (Simon & Schuster) 

Football Book of the Year, in association with the Football Writers’ Association

Barça – The inside story of the world’s greatest football club, Simon Kuper (Short Books) 

Bestselling Sports Book of the Year

You Are a Champion, Marcus Rashford and Carl Anka (Macmillan Children’s Books)