《The Rivals》是2006年Random House US出版的圖書，作者是Johnette Howard。
基本介紹
- 中文名：The Rivals
- 作者：Johnette Howard
- 出版社：Random House US
- ISBN：9780767918855
內容簡介,作者簡介,
內容簡介
In the annals of sports, no individual rivalry matches theintensity, longevity, and emotional resonance of the one betweentwo extraordinary women: Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova.
Over sixteen years, Evert and Navratilova met on the tennis court arecord eighty times—sixty times in finals. At their first match inAkron, Ohio, in 1973, Chris was an eighteen-year-old star andMartina, two years her junior, was an unknown Czech making herfirst trip to the United States. It would be two years beforeMartina finally beat Chris, and another year—after Navratilova haddropped twenty pounds and improved her game—before Evert publiclybetrayed her first hint of concern. By then, the women were alreadyfriends and sometimes doubles partners, and the colorful story thatwould captivate the world was under way.
The Rivals is the first book to examine the intertwinedjourney of these legendary champions, based on extensive interviewswith each. Taking readers on and off the courts with vivid,never-before-published material, award-winning sportswriterJohnette Howard shows how Evert and Navratilova came of age duringthe rambunctious golden age of tennis in the 1970s, andhow—together—they redefined women’s athletics during a time ofvolcanic change in sports and society. Their epic careers unfoldedagainst the backdrop of the fight for Title IX, the gay rightsmovement, the women's movement and the fall of the iron curtain.Howard draws entertaining, intimate, and myth-shattering portraitsof Evert and Navratilova, describing the personal migrations eachwoman made, and showing how enmeshed their lives became.
Navratilova and Evert’s ability to forge and maintain a friendshipduring sixteen years of often-cutthroat competition has alwaysprovoked wonder and admiration. They were a study in contrasts, acollision of politics and style and looks. Chris was the crowddarling while Martina, her greatest foil, was often cast as thevillain. Chris was the imperturbable champion who proved toughnessand femininity weren’t mutually exclusive; Martina was portrayed asboth emotionally fragile and some fearsome Amazon. Chris’soff-court life was presumed to be bedrock solid, the stuff of MainStreet America; Martina’s was derided as outrageous and sometimeschaotic, even during her invincible years. Yet, through it all, thetwo remained friends who lifted each other to heights that eachsays she couldn’t have reached without the other.
Women’s tennis now is more popular than ever, thanks in large partto the trailblazing of Evert and Navratilova. A rivalry liketheirs, filled with so many grace notes, is unique in sportshistory.
作者簡介
JOHNETTE HOWARD is an award-winning sports columnist for Newsday who previously worked as a senior writer atSports Illustrated and as a columnist at the Washington Post. Her work was included in The Best American Sports Writing of the 20th Century, and her columns were nominated for the 2000 Pulitzer Prize in general commentary. She lives in New York City.
