The Triumph of the Amateurs is the story of the lost world or professional rowing in America, a sport that attracted crowds of thousands, widespread betting, and ultimately corruption that foretold its doom. It centers on the colorful careers of two New York City Irish boys, the Biglin brothers John and Barney, now long forgotten save for Thomas Eakins's portraits of them in their shell. If the bestseller The Boys in the Boat portrayed the good guys of the U.S.’s 1936 Olympic crew, the Biglins, along with their colleagues and successors, were the Bad Boys in the Boat. Rascals abounded on and off the water, where rowdy fans often outdid modern soccer thugs in violence, betting was rampant—as was fixing—and spectators in the tens of thousands came out to see it all. The Triumph of the Amateurs traces the sport from its rise in the years before the Civil War on through the Gilded Age to its scandalous demise and eventual transition into a purely amateur sport. In addition, Barney Biglin’s later career as holder of sinecures offers a colorful glimpse into late 19th-century New York City political corruption. Illustrated with 40 black and white and color illustrations, including Thomas Eakins's famous paintings of the Biglin brothers rowing on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia in 1872.

Women are, and have been for many years, actively involved as players, supporters and co-ordinators in a range of sports and yet they are often missing from, or sidelined in, accounts of the history of these sports. Commenting first on the lack of inclusion of women in British sports history, the book goes on to examine aspects of women’s participation between the late-nineteenth century and the mid-twentieth century more broadly. It draws together some of the latest research undertaken by international scholars working in the field, and includes case studies about golf, bridge, rowing, figure skating and athletics. Between them the chapters demonstrate that women enjoyed mixed fortunes in sport. They positively highlight the scope of participation, as well as the complex interactions and responses that participation generated on account of life stage, social class, ethnicity and national identity across time and place. The incorporated methodological and theoretical approaches invite readers to reconsider existing sport historiography and point to new directions for future research. This book was first published as a special issue of Sport in History.