In 1851, the yacht America, headed to England to take on the best of the British, stopping to pick up the finest French wines along the way.

After defeating the English, the owners decided to entrust the trophy to the New York Yacht Club, as an international trophy to be competed for. They named it after their yacht, America and the America’s Cup was born.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy begin their series on the America’s Cup, the 132-year winning streak, and its end, 40 years ago when Australia II won a famous victory.

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Research

There is no limit to the writings on the America’s Cup, and this was one of the biggest research jobs I’ve had.

Some of the key sources included:

A Full Cup: Sir Thomas Lipton's Extraordinary Life and His Quest for the America's Cup by Michael D'Antonio

The Quest for the America's Cup: Sailing to Victory by Richard V. Simpson

Exposed: The Dark Side of the America’s Cup by Alan Sefton and Larry Keating

Of course, the great man joined us and his book is Born To Win: The Power Of A Vision by John Bertrand.

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Forty years ago, on the 26th of September 1983, Australia II crossed the finish line in the deciding race of the America’s Cup, ending the longest winning streak in the history of sport, 132 years.

Sports Bizarre with Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the victory with a special series exploring the history and rare facts of the America’s Cup.

The series begins Monday 4 September and will run right up to the 40th anniversary on the 26 September with a special episode.

 

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In part two of our series, Duncan Hamilton and Tony Rolt begin their assault on the Le Mans 24-hour race.

Signing with Jaguar, the 1953 seemed full of promise, only for them to be disqualified during qualifying on a technicality. Not to waste the evening, Rolt and Hamilton have a huge night out, only to find out they might not be disqualified after all.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy discuss the wildest 24-hour Le Mans race in history, and the two men at the centre of it.

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Resources

The ultimate source is Touch Wood: The Autobiography of the 1953 Le Mans Winner by Duncan Hamilton the man himself.

Of course, I had to research a lot of other things as Duncan never minded telling a good story, with the truth sometimes being bent a little.

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As a baby, Duncan Hamilton crashed his pram down 38 steps. This proved to be just a precursor to him crashing cars and planes.

Despite the crashes, he was fast, incredibly fast, becoming one of the great race car drivers of his era. Then he met Tony Rolt, a war hero who had escaped from seven German prisoner-of-war camps, and the two formed one of the great racing partnerships of all time.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy discuss a friendship that led to one of the greatest Le Mans races in history.

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Resources

The ultimate source is Touch Wood: The Autobiography of the 1953 Le Mans Winner by Duncan Hamilton the man himself.

Of course, I had to research a lot of other things as Duncan never minded telling a good story, with the truth sometimes being bent a little.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bunker Spreckels became famous as a surfer, but he was born into the wealthy Spreckles family, a dynasty built on the sugar trade that gave us the term ‘sugar daddy.’

At five, Bunker’s mother remarried, and he suddenly had a new stepfather, Hollywood icon Clark Gable, who treated him as his own son. When Clark died, Bunker fled to Hawaii, where surfing took over his life.

At 21 years old, Bunker unexpectedly inherited $50 million, leading to his life becoming an ongoing international surfing trip, with a coterie of writers, artists, photographers and filmmakers documenting his every move.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy examine the man who made popular the idea of the surfer as a rock and roll star and look at the family that produced him.

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Before organised sport, there was mob football, where entire villages played against each other for days, with no rules, and the kings of England banning it, then legalising it and then banning it again.

Like one of those prehistoric fish in the depths of the ocean, some forms of medieval football have survived to this day, still without rules. Organisers do say, ‘Unnecessary violence is frowned on.’ There is a lot of frowning.

Titus O’Reily and Mick examine how modern-day medieval football games, such as the Ashbourne Royal Shrovetide game and the Atherstone Ball Game have survived.

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In part two, Tex Rickard moves to Argentina to raise cattle. Instead, he ends up in the middle of a war between Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil, with Argentina asking him to lead their army.

Declining this, Tex returns to the United States, where he begins promoting a boxer by the name of Jack Dempsey, buys Madison Square Garden, and creates the New York Rangers.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy wrap up their series on the greatest promoter of all time and how the mafia tried to end him.

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Research

There’s been a lot written about Tex, given his range across all kinds of sports and endeavours. The book I found most helpful was Tex Rickard: Boxing’s Greatest Promoter by Colleen Aycock and Mark Scott.

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By his mid-twenties, Tex Rickard had been a cowboy, a Marshal, was friends with Wyatt Earp and had followed the gold rushes to Alaska.

In Alaska he became friends with people with names like Swiftwater Bill, Deep Hole Johnson, Ham-Grease Jimmy, and the Chills and Fever Kid. He also discovered his true genius, promoting sport.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy examine the life of Tex Rickard, the greatest promoter in the history of sport.

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Research

There’s been a lot written about Tex, given his range across all kinds of sports and endeavours. The book I found most helpful was Tex Rickard: Boxing’s Greatest Promoter by Colleen Aycock and Mark Scott.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Carlos Kaiser had one of the longest careers in Brazilian football, joining all the big four clubs Botafogo, Fluminense, Flamengo, and Vasco da Gama, plus stints in Mexico, Argentina and France.

However, what made Kaiser’s career remarkable was not its length or being part of so many top sides but the fact that he never played a single game.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy look at the greatest footballer to never play football and examine how he got away with it for so long.

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Research

Kaiser was a hard one to pin down as every source I found seemed to have either differing accounts or outright myths.

Kaiser: The Greatest Footballer Never To Play Football by Rob Smyth was incredibly helpful and is the best book to get on the topic.

Otherwise, there’s a treasure trove online about him.

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Last week we left off with the two Dassler brothers splitting apart their shoe company after a vicious falling out.

With the Second World War now over, the two brothers start building their new companies, Puma and Adidas, with the rivalry only getting hotter.

Titus O’Reily and Mick Molloy look at how the two feuding companies took sports apparel, footwear and marketing to new heights, and how the focus on each other meant they missed a new company emerging, Nike.

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Resources

There are too many resources to name for this one as it’s been a favourite for both business and sports reporters for years.

The person who has covered it the most however is Barbara Smit. She's written a few books on the topic. I’ve put the link below and highly recommend it as not just a great sports book but a great read for anyone.

Sneaker Wars: The Enemy Brothers Who Founded Adidas and Puma and the Family Feud That Forever Changed the Business of Sports by Barbara Smit

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