The best sports biographies

We’re not the first to observe that the thing about sport is that it comes with a built-in narrative arc. There will be heroes and there will be villains.

Best sports biography movies

There will be triumphs and there will be disappointments. There will be winners and there will be losers (unless it’s a sport like football which, to Ted Lasso’s continuing befuddlement, allows for a “tie”). But what happens off the pitch, or outside the field, or court-side, can often be as dramatic – if not more so – than what happens on, as it takes a certain type of person to excel at sport: gifted, driven, and sometimes, yes, a little psychotic.

Documentary-makers have found a rich seam to exploit in retelling sports narratives recently, and looking at some of the more exceptional characters who’ve risen to the fore (The Last Dance being the most high-profile example, although there has been a raft of other good ones), but nothing can delve into the intricacies of a great athlete