The making of a champion

Chronicles the history of football and the rise of the National Football League, looks at football equipment, discusses the process by which young people train to become football players, describes the different positions, and examines the characteristics of a champion. Includes fact boxes and player profiles.

Presents a study on world-class swimming and contains information on mental and physical training, nutrition, various swimming strokes, competitions and championships, and the Olympics.

Examines the history of boxing, discussing the origins of the sport's governing bodies, and looking at what it takes to become a champion, with information on training, equipment, attack and defense, sparring, scoring, and other topics.

Examines the history and roots of judo, judo structure, basic moves, holds, and throws, world-class and Olympic competitions and championships, and judo ranks.

Examines the basic skills necessary to be a successful mountain biker and includes case studies of professional mountain bikers, training for competitions, nutrition, and information on proper equipment.

Reviews the history of marathon racing, looks at Olympic and city marathons, explains how marathon runners prepare for the long races, and discusses injuries and recovery, pacing and race strategy, and what it takes to be a champion marathon runner.

Examines world-class sprinting and the skills necessary to become a skilled sprinter and covers the extensive training involved and profiles some of the world's most famous athletes and Olympic champions.

Chronicles the history of basketball and the rise of the National Basketball Association, looks at the basics of the game, discusses the process by which young people train to become basketball players, describes the different skills, and examines the characteristics of a champion. Includes factboxes and player profiles.

Describes such aspects of figure skating as learning to move on the ice, learning to fall, jumps, spins, the compulsory figures, off-ice training, nutrition, coaching and development, competition preparation, and judging, and includes color photos of champion skaters and a table of skating records.

Chronicles the history of soccer, examines the fundamentals of the game and the role of different player positions, discusses the process by which young people train to become soccer players, and examines the characteristics of a champion. Includes fact boxes and player profiles.