Eventually taking the form of a book, 'Why we kneel, how we rise,' Mikey delivers some horrifying truths that most of us wouldn't have been aware of. Why We Kneel, How We Rise combines Holding’s own experience of racial abuse along with the stories of some of the most iconic athletes in the world including Usain Bolt, Adam Goodes, Thierry Henry, Michael Johnson, Ibtihaj Muhammad, Makhaya Ntini, Naomi Osaka and Hope Powell. The public reaction to his powerful words about racism compelled Holding to write “Why We Kneel, How We Rise” with the help of journalist Ed Hawkins.

Holding beat five other shortlisted authors for the 33rd annual William Hill Sports Book of the Year, the world’s oldest and richest sports literary prize and not a single finalist on the list had won the award before.ARRAffinity cookie is set by Azure app service, and allows the service to choose the right instance established by a user to deliver subsequent requests made by that user. Holding also invites some of this generations biggest sporting icons, including Usain Bolt, Thierry Henry, Michael Johnson and Naomi Osaka to share their stories and views on one of the biggest ills in society.

I can’t even process myself enough to think how these families cope with this grief or what George Floyd might have been thinking when his repeated plea for help was refused when his lungs were grasping for air and he could not breathe anymore and his vision got blurred whose face was it that he wanted to see for the last time? Through the prism of sport and conversations with its legends, including Usain Bolt, Adam Goodes, Thierry Henry, Michael Johnson, Ibtihaj Muhammad, Makhaya Ntini, Naomi Osaka and Hope Powell, Michael Holding explains how racism dehumanises people; how it works to achieve that end; how it has been ignored by history and historians; and what it is like to be treated differently just because of the colour of your skin. AddThis sets this geolocation cookie to help understand the location of users who share the information.Michael Holding, said “I felt it was really important to write this book, and I hope it encourages people to educate themselves about the issues raised. I would like to thank my writing partner, Ed Hawkins, Simon & Schuster and all the great sports stars who contributed to the book.” The book stems from a rain break in play in a test match between England and West Indies, with BLM in the news Holding gave an emotional interview to which people responded in their thousands. A seed was planted and a book became reality. This cookie is set by the provider The Guardian. This cookie is used for embedding The Guardian video player.

This brings us nicely to the British Empire and the way its purpose and consequences have been taught in schools. It's not so much a lie as a deliberate indoctrination of British people against the horrors of what was committed in their name. [...] Some experts in the field say that the British have 'forgotten'. I'm not sure the wider population were ever conscious of what was happening in far-flung lands, let alone aware of the atrocities that were taking place. Among them were the tennis player Naomi Osaka and the footballer Thierry Henry. “Mikey, you can’t stop. You have to continue,” he says they told him. It did, to Holding – only two decades earlier. “Usain remembers that story and I remember mine because of the way it made us feel,” Holding says. “It hurt, and it still does.”Holding stresses that we are not asking for history to be edited, like some people (Boris Johnson) accuse; it has already been edited to suit a particular narrative, we need the unedited version. I'd definitely like to read Why We Kneel, How We Rise again. Like I said earlier I learnt so much, what I mentioned in this review is just the tip of the iceberg. A logical, compassionate, informative and inspiring non-fiction read. Holding’s gaze is all-encompassing, taking in Africa from where indentured labour was sourced to the colonies, and the American civil-war, and he uses Floyd’s death to stress that racism is still thriving. The ageing speedster makes us even look at Alex Haley’s Roots with fresh eyes. Considered an epochal book on the slave trade, Holding says that “it was a palatable version for the masses”. Because we have heard the Jamaican for so many years on air, one does not so much read the book as hear him read it aloud to us. The voice is calm and reasoned as always; the hurt, the sorrow, the angst, the hopelessness and the hope are all pitched in the same even tone. Remember his

We take a knee to remember the history of dehumanisation and to raise awareness that it is still happening. But these folks, and what they did, allow us to get up. They have inspired so many heroes of the present day and in their stories and experiences we can learn how more of us can rise. This cookie is used to store a unique identifier to determine the number of unique users for various parts of bbc.co.uk. A number of prominent sports people, including Arsenal legend and World Cup-winning France striker Thierry Henry and eight-time Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt, have since shared their stories of racial discrimination with Holding and feature in his new book on the subject - 'Why We Kneel, How We Rise'. The JSESSIONID cookie is used by New Relic to store a session identifier so that New Relic can monitor session counts for an application.Alyson Rudd, Chair of Judges, said: “Given everything that has happened in the world over the last 18 months, I am proud the standard of the entries was as strong as ever. Michael’s book was very well written, and brilliantly and evocatively highlights the importance of education in defeating one of society’s biggest issues.” He’s honest about how some of the historical stories in this book are uncomfortable to read, and I definitely agree. But that discomfort is something we have to sit with, let seep in, and become resolved to never let happen again. Holding’s book described by the judging panel as ‘one of the most important sports books you will ever read’ – looks into the root cause of racism and the terrible toll it takes on people, communities and the world. Usain Bolt reveals his first experience of racism was not in his home country of Jamaica, but in Britain, when he made his first visit in his early 20s. He recalls strolling around a shopping mall in London, taking some free time before an athletics event the next day. He needed a new watch, he says, so went into a jewellery store. “I said to the woman behind the counter, ‘I like this one. How much?’ She tells me the price, then says, ‘Are you sure you can afford it?’” And we know kids don't think that way. It's big, responsible people writing those things and sending them."