Eight Cycling Books Nominated For Awards

The ten categories are split between four general categories (Autobiography/Biography; Illustrated Book; Publicity Campaign; and New Writer) in which the cycling books appear and six categories for specific sports (Football; Cricket; Rugby; Horse Racing; Golf and Motorsports).

The cycling nominees are as follows:

Autobiography/Biography of the Year

Seven Deadly Sins
by David Walsh
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

My Time
by Bradley Wiggins with William Fotheringham
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

Merckx: Half Man, Half Bike
by William Fotheringham
(read my review here)

Illustrated Book of the Year

Bike! - A Tribute To The World's Greatest Cycling Designers
by Richard Moore and Daniel Benson
(not reviewed on the Café Bookshelf as I was one of the contributors, as was Sarah Connolly)

Coppi
by Herbie Sykes
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

21 Days To Glory
by Team Sky & Dave Brailsford (photos by Scott Mitchell)
(not reviewed on the Café Bookshelf)

Publicity Campaign of the Year

Between The Lines
by Victoria Pendleton with Donald McRae
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

The Secret Race
by Tyler Hamilton with Daniel Coyle
(read the Café Bookshelf review here, read my review here)

Overall, Britain's Olympians dominate the shortlists, with Sebastian Coe (Running My Life), Tom Daley (My Story), and Jessica Ennis (Unbelievable) all being up for awards as well as Bradley Wiggins (My Time) and Victoria Pendleton (Between The Lines). Other nominees include Clare Balding (My Animals and Other Family), Ian Thorpe (This Is Me), Darren Clarke (An Open Book), Simon Jordan (Be Careful What You Wish For), Geordan Murphy (My Life As An Outsider), Brent Pope (If You Really Knew Me), and Oliver Holt (Miracle At Medinah).

Winners of the individual categories will be announced on 21 May, with those nine books then going head-to-head in an online vote for the Overall British Sports Book of the Year award, which was won by Paul Kimmage (Engage) in 2012.

Last year just two cycling books were nominated: David Millar's Racing Through The Dark (nominated for Best Biography/Autobiography and Publicity Campaign) and Daniel Friebe's Mountain High (nominated for Best Illustrated Book). Cycling books have won in the past, with Richard Moore, Matt Rendell, Robert Penn, Michael Hutchinson, Mark Beaumont, and Daniel Coyle all having picked up gongs in the past:

2011

Best Publicity Campaign

It's All About the Bike
by Robert Penn
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

2010

Best Publicity Campaign

The Man Who Cycled The World
by Mark Beaumont

2008

Best Autobiography/Biography

In Search of Robert Millar
by Richard Moore
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

2007

Best Autobiography/Biography

The Death of Marco Pantani
by Matt Rendell
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

Best New Writer

The Hour: Sporting Immortality the Hard Way
by Michael Hutchinson
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

2006

Best Autobiography/Biography

Lance Armstrong: Tour de Force (in US: Lance Armstrong's War)
by Daniel Coyle
(read the Café Bookshelf review here)

2003

Best New Writer

Kings of the Mountains
by Matt Rendell

With so many cycling books nominated this year it is to be hoped that the 2014 British Sports Book Awards shortlists will include a dedicated category for cycling books - there's certainly enough of them being published in the UK to justify it.