Book description
This is the definitive biography of Australia's most enigmatic, pioneering and controversial athletics coach - best remembered as coach of John Landy in his quest to break the four-minute mile, and of Herb Elliot in preparation for the 1960 Rome Olympics.
- Coming soon!
Why read it?
1 author picked Why Die? The Extraordinary Percy Cerutty 'Maker of Champions' as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
The title of this biography about the Australian maverick running coach (one Cerutty had originally planned for a book he never wrote) speaks volumes.
After decades of ill health, Cerutty defied medical expectations by transforming himself into a remarkable physical specimen in his mid-40s through diet and exercise. He applied his unorthodox ideas about running (heavy weights, galloping, sand dune running, spear-carrying, and a mainly vegetarian wholegrain diet) to those he coached – leading Herb Elliot to Olympic gold in the 1960 1500 metres.
Cerutty was a colourful, controversial character and Sims’ book is a gripping read. But what I…
From Sam's list on challenge the status quo about how to run.
If you love Why Die? The Extraordinary Percy Cerutty 'Maker of Champions'...
These Blue Mountains
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.
German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…
Want books like Why Die? The Extraordinary Percy Cerutty 'Maker of Champions'?
Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 6 books like Why Die? The Extraordinary Percy Cerutty 'Maker of Champions'.
Browse books like Why Die? The Extraordinary Percy Cerutty 'Maker of Champions'
Share your top 3 reads of 2025!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
1,367
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like Why Die? The Extraordinary Percy Cerutty 'Maker of Champions', you might also like...
Pioneer Paddles of the Colonial South
Award-winning novelist William Auman, author of If Trees Could Testify..., takes the reader on a time-traveling odyssey featuring 345 bodies of water in six states within the historical context through which they unfold.
Journey into remaining Colonial-era wilderness with stories of pirate treasure, epic frontiersmen, Indigenous Peoples, and Revolutionary…
A Winter's Disgrace
Cyprian, a marquess’s heir, will not let his mother choose his next bride. Leaving a house party in a blizzard to avoid her stratagems, he finds a woman trudging half frozen toward the London road. Rosamund fled disgrace, hoping to reach the one person who might shelter her, but even…
