Great Sporting Mishaps: Three Centuries of Slip-Ups and Cock-Ups

Misfortune is never far away on the field of sport. Just when everything seems to be going to plan, the fickle finger of fate can strike without warning to turn a celebration into a commiseration. Ask the Russian marathon runner who turned the wrong way on entering the stadium at the 1954 European Championships and promptly saw a gold medal become bronze; or the jockey who didn't bother riding his horse flat out because he was mistakenly convinced there was still a circuit to go; or the Irish boxer who took a swing at his opponent, missed, crashed out of the ring and succeeded in knocking himself out. Spanning three centuries and a multitude of sports, this is a classic collection of the finest calamities.