Sophie Pascoe – Stroke of Fate

With Tony Smith

Published by Hachette New Zealand $39.99 RRP, 22 October 2013

A story of passion, dedication, courage, commitment and self-belief.

Losing a leg in a lawnmower accident would be catastrophic for most people. But swimming star Sophie Pascoe believes it's the best thing that has happened to her. She reveals how her family helped her turn a negative into a positive and how she developed the drive to become one of the world's greatest Paralympians.

In this compelling and inspirational biography, Sophie gives a candid account of the first 20 years of her event-packed life. She tells the story of her struggles and successes, challenges and triumphs with refreshing openness and good humour.

And, of course, she talks about bursting on to the international sporting stage with three gold medals and a silver as a schoolgirl at the Beijing Paralympic Games in 2008. As well, Sophie talks of her brush with losing her other leg and the mental strength she had to summon to go on to break a swag of world records and reap three further gold medals at the 2012 London Paralympics.

About the Author

Tony Smith has been a senior sportswriter and columnist for The Press in Christchurch and the Fairfax Media group for almost sixteen years and has worked in daily journalism since 1980.

He has covered the Sydney, Athens, Beijing and London Olympic Games, the 2010 FIFA World Cup football finals in South Africa, the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, the 2003 and 2007 Rugby World Cup tournaments and northern hemisphere tours by the All Blacks.Tony was the Sir T P McLean New Zealand Sportswriter of the Year in 2007 and has won national awards for best sports columnist and feature writer.

His previous books include Ryan Nelsen's Road to the World Cup, published by Hachette New Zealand in 2010 to mark the All Whites' World Cup finals campaign.