May 18, 2010 by Matt Horner | No Comments
Matthias Sindelar was one of the greatest footballers of his generation. Tall, blond, and athletic, Sindelar could have been a creation of Goebbels’ master race propaganda machine. However, the Austrian’s mysterious death, at the age of just 35, left many people questioning whether the player nicknamed ‘the Paper Man’ had been the victim of a [...]
May 3, 2010 by Matt Horner | 1 Comment
Forget Sylvester Stallone’s dramatic penalty-saving antics in Escape to Victory, the most remarkable prisoner of war goalkeeper story belongs to former Manchester City stopper Bert Trautmann. German Trautmann’s incredible journey took him from Hitler Youth to Wembley, via the Eastern front and a spell in a north of England POW camp. Now aged 87, Trautmann [...]
May 2, 2010 by Matt Horner | 1 Comment
In late October 1934, the Empress of Japan set sail from Vancouver heading for Yokohama, Japan. Among the passengers were an All-Star party of Major League baseball players, who—despite strained US-Japan relations—were on a mission to spread the joys of America’s national game. The star of the team was Babe Ruth, but it was a back-up [...]
April 1, 2010 by Matt Horner | 2 Comments
TACKLING HITLER, a new book of stories about sportsmen and sportswomen who faced the Nazis, is due to be published in 2012. The book, written by Matthew Horner, will tell inspiring and remarkable tales of courage, espionage, and rebellion, and incredible stories of appeasement, collaboration and murder.