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Rulebreakers and Ghost Runners

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What to expect

Bloomsbury presents Rulebreakers and Ghost Runners: The British women who asserted their right to run by Katie Holmes, read by Lydia Thomson

The incredible untold stories of the British women who broke the rules and pioneered female running today

Did you know that until April 1975 women in the UK were banned from marathons and all races longer than four miles? Back in the 1960s, women started to break the rules and ‘crash’ men’s road races, challenging discrimination and showing that they were perfectly capable of running marathons – or even further.

Sports historian Katie Holmes shares the untold stories of these female pioneers. From the early days of organised athletics in the 1920s, to the social change, feminism and jogging craze of the 1970s and the marathon boom of the early 1980s, these inspirational women broke the rules, broke records and broke barriers.

There’s Violet Piercy who ran in a men’s marathon in 1936, decades before it was allowed; Scottish athlete Dale Greig who ignored the rules to compete in the 1964 Isle of Wight marathon; and ‘Queen of the Roads’ Leslie Watson who successfully challenged the exclusion of women from Britain’s most famous ultramarathon.

This is a fascinating, inspiring account of how British women asserted their right to run long distance and changed the landscape of running for good.

Critics Review

We hear so much about the women who run today… but what about the women who paved the way? Rulebreakers and Ghost Runners is a powerful reminder that the freedom we have as women runners today was hard fought for. An inspiring and grounding read that honours the strength, courage and determination of the women who claimed their place on the start line. A must-read for anyone who loves running and wants to understand the journey behind it.
Tasha Thompson, founder of Black Girls Do Run UK
This gripping, meticulously researched book will have you cheering these trailblazers on as they paved the way for women like us to participate in long-distance running, a sport that has transformed our lives by giving us the courage and self-belief to achieve anything we set our minds to. Read this important and much-needed book, see how far we’ve come – and then send up a vote of thanks to these unsung heroines who dared to do things differently.
Lisa Jackson, author of “Still Running After All These Tears”
Katie Holmes has significantly expanded the canon with her seminal book,Rulebreakers & Ghost Runners. The American runners Roberta Gibb and Kathrine Switzer have long been the face of women's distance running and the struggle for equality. But Katie's book introduces the British pioneers who, through their perseverance, made it possible for generations of women to compete. It is because of the determination of Violet Piercy, Dale Greig and others, that we have been able to enjoy watching Paula Radcliffe, Jo Pavey and Eilish McColgan dominate elite women's distance running on a global stage. An important book.
Anna Kessel, sports journalist
A meticulous, fascinating account of an untold world, where women defied the rules and pushed the sport of running forward. We owe a huge debt to these women, and to Holmes for bringing their stories to light.
Lily Canter, co author of Ultra Women: The Trailblazers Defying Sexism in Sport
A much-needed read. Accomplished historian Katie Holmes brings to light the unsung heroines of women’s running history.
Jacqueline Hansen, author and two-time marathon world record holder
Brilliantly writes INTO history the women who had to fight for their right to run. Holmes showcases a great depth of research into many of the pioneer women runners who have been previously been 'written out of history'. New interviews and contemporary records are neatly intertwined to tell the story of the problems women had in being accepted into races, and how their breaking of rules, and ghost running, eventually effected necessary change.
Steve Chilton, author of Voices from the Hills: pioneering women fell and mountain runners.
I was hooked from the very first page. These women’s stories are powerful, inspiring, and at times infuriating, and this book finally gives these remarkable runners the recognition they have always deserved.
Emma Wilkinson, co-author of Ultra Women: The Trailblazers Defying Sexism in Sport
A fascinating deep dive into the untold history of women's running. These stories of courage, determination and an enduring love for the sport will inspire generations of runners
Jen Benson, author of The Path She Runs: A personal history of women’s ultrarunning
Katie doesn’t just document history; she reframes it. She shows that women’s running has never been a recent “boom” or trend – it has always been there, driven by women who refused to wait for permission. If we want to understand women’s sport today – its progress, its ongoing challenges, and its future – we need to understand the women who made it possible. This book restores them to their rightful place: not as footnotes, but as pioneers.
Sophie Power, ultrarunner and author of The Power Within: Record-breaking, Ultrarunning and fighting for change
An inspiring and overdue account of the women who changed running and a compelling reminder that women have always run – history just forgot to keep pace.
Fiona Skillen, Professor in History, Glasgow Caledonian University, co-editor ‘Histories of Women’s Football in Scotland and Ireland’
With meticulous research and accessible writing, Katie Holmes brings a generation of British pioneer women runners out of the 'unofficial' shadows. This overdue book fills a major gap in the history of British sport, and the global phenomenon of women's running. At last, we can fully understand Violet Piercy, Dale Greig, Leslie Watson and many other remarkable women who have been mere misreported footnotes.
Professor Roger Robinson, author When Running Made History and Running Throughout Time: the Greatest Running Stories Ever Told
Author Katie Holmes
Narrator Lydia Thomson
Duration 8 hours and 52 minutes
Release Date
ISBN 9781399425360
Format Audiobook
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing
Genre Gender studies: women and girls, History of sport, Marathon and cross-country running, Pressure groups, protest movements and non-violent action
Availability AU, GB, IE, US

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