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The Ghost Runner: The Tragedy of the Man They Couldn't Stop
The mystery man threw off his disguise and started to run. Furious stewards gave chase. The crowd roared. A legend was born. Soon the world would know him as 'the ghost runner'. John Tarrant. The extraordinary man whom nobody could stop. As a hapless teenage boxer in the 1950s, he'd been paid GBP17 expenses. When he wanted to run, he was banned for life. His amateur status had been compromised. Forever. Now he was fighting back, gatecrashing races all over Britain. No number on his shirt. No friends in high places. Soon he would be a record-breaker, one of the greatest long-distance runners the world has ever seen. This is his true story: "The Ghost Runner".
352 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 2011
26 people are currently reading
389 people want to read
About the author
Bill Jones
5 books1 followerBill Jones is the author of several award-winning books. The Ghost Runner (2011) won the 'Best New Writer' in the British Sports Book Awards. His biography of the ice skater John Curry - Alone (2014) - was shortlisted for the William Hill Awards and won the 'Outstanding Writing' category in the British Sports Book Awards. His first novel - Black Camp 21 (2018) was shortlisted in the Hugh McIlvanney Crime Fiction awards. All three of those books are in development as major feature films. Mr.Pilbeam Built A Boat is his latest, and most personal work of fiction, to date.
Before turning to full-time writing, Bill was - for many years - a distinguished documentary film-maker, producing and directing programmes for the BBC, Channel 4, ITV, Discovery, Sky TV, PBS, national Geographic and many more.
His love of writing began as a journalist on an evening paper in North Yorkshire; the county where he now lives.
Before turning to full-time writing, Bill was - for many years - a distinguished documentary film-maker, producing and directing programmes for the BBC, Channel 4, ITV, Discovery, Sky TV, PBS, national Geographic and many more.
His love of writing began as a journalist on an evening paper in North Yorkshire; the county where he now lives.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
November 18, 2011
This book, like its subject, is an underdog. It didn't get a lot of publicity. The author is a virtually unknown. I don't believe it was picked up by a major publisher. It starts off a little dry, but once you get to the meat of the story, it becomes hard to put down. This tale epitomizes the problem with amateur athletics in the 50s and 60s. It corroborates with other horror stories in books about American distance runners like Steve Prefontaine and Wes Santee. John Tarrant -- an ultra distance runner, and a good one -- is not a particularly likable person, but his resilience and dedication are beyond admirable. He gives his entire life to the passion of the sport, ultimately at too great a cost. Non-runners, never fear. This book is written by a man who says he doesn't run, and doesn't understand the lure of it either. That's why "The Ghost Runner" isn't a list of race times and workout breakdowns. In fact, if I had one criticism as a runner, it's that it has a tendency to tell me Tarrant won a marathon without telling me what his finishing time was. But, that's about as negative as I can get about this book. Also, my British friends will appreciate its use of many British phrases that haven't quite made it into the vernacular this side of the pond.
November 10, 2021
A fascinating story of the single-minded drive that an athlete can have, regardless of his actual ability to legally compete. The Ghost Runner is forced to compete in races without an official number due to the complete unwillingness of the athletics authorities to view his case with any form of nuance or compassion. As a younger man, John Tarrant made a couple of quid in some local boxing matches - barely covering his travel expenses - and his honesty led to him declaring that when applying for his amateur athletics license - which was, obviously, declined, multiple times, throughout his life. Instead he ran illegally, hoping that his results would force the authorities to reconsider, but instead it just made them more determined to exclude him.
Clearly an odd, if not actually dislikable, man the book suffers from the distance that the biographer has from the subject. John doesn't ever come across as a man to share his feelings or reasons for doing something, so we are left with guesses, supposition and a weirdly absent personality. Which does fail to balance the selfishness with the clearly lasting relationship between himself and his wife and son.
Clearly an odd, if not actually dislikable, man the book suffers from the distance that the biographer has from the subject. John doesn't ever come across as a man to share his feelings or reasons for doing something, so we are left with guesses, supposition and a weirdly absent personality. Which does fail to balance the selfishness with the clearly lasting relationship between himself and his wife and son.
May 26, 2013
This is the remarkable tale of John Tarrant, who became famous in the British sporting world as the "ghost runner" in the 1950s, '60s, and '70s. As a teenager - long before his running career - John took a paltry 17 pounds in "expense" money as a boxer. Thus, he was banned for life by the British athletic governing bodies from competing officially in any amateur running event. John became a victim of a corrupt and outdated system with "roots in class and snobbery", where by "professionals were on par with criminals".
Not to be deterred, John would show up at races in disguise - often on the back of his brother Victor's motorcycle - and jump into a race without being a registered entrant. The furious officials would give chase after the speedy mystery man, but of course they were unable to catch him. This sort of subterfuge went on and on and eventually he became somewhat of a folk hero in the running community, as well as the Liberal press which took up his cause.
Yet, this is so much more than a simple story of a disgruntled runner, who jumps into races and then dashes home without the medal or trophy he deserves. His grueling training regimes, often running 100 to 200 miles per week with punishing hill work in all sorts of conditions, boggle this reader's mind. Eventually, John has to go beyond the conventional 10 mile and marathon distance races at the time to enter "the splendid and total isolation of ultra-distance". Now the distances are 40, 50, and even 100 miles, with races going anywhere from 12 to 24 hours.
One of the more fascinating parts of the book highlights John's running adventures in South Africa. At the time, apartheid was the law of the land, but the normally non-political John Tarrant had little use for the country's racist policies. He always had an aversion to authority figures, going back to his years in a London "children's home", so he was not about to bow to the South African government.
Needless to say, John was a tremendously fit man. He ran like a gazelle, never drank or smoked, and he always tried to eat in a healthy fashion. Over the years, however, races were interrupted for John by violent bouts of diarrhea. They came and went over the years, sometimes knocking him out of race and other times just putting him behind the leaders for a short time. Finally, he was diagnosed as having an ulcer, but unfortunately that was an incorrect conclusion. By the time the doctors figured out he had cancer in his stomach it was too late to really save his life. How did such a healthy runner become so sick? For a short time, John worked in factory, cleaning asbestos off brake linings, and that seems the most plausible cause of his cancer.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, even for the reader who has no interest in long distance running. It's the story of a man who never gave up, even with all the powers-to-be against him with all their money and influence. Some may see John Tarrant as a relentless crusader while others may see a pig-headed ne'er-do-well. Perhaps he was both.
Not to be deterred, John would show up at races in disguise - often on the back of his brother Victor's motorcycle - and jump into a race without being a registered entrant. The furious officials would give chase after the speedy mystery man, but of course they were unable to catch him. This sort of subterfuge went on and on and eventually he became somewhat of a folk hero in the running community, as well as the Liberal press which took up his cause.
Yet, this is so much more than a simple story of a disgruntled runner, who jumps into races and then dashes home without the medal or trophy he deserves. His grueling training regimes, often running 100 to 200 miles per week with punishing hill work in all sorts of conditions, boggle this reader's mind. Eventually, John has to go beyond the conventional 10 mile and marathon distance races at the time to enter "the splendid and total isolation of ultra-distance". Now the distances are 40, 50, and even 100 miles, with races going anywhere from 12 to 24 hours.
One of the more fascinating parts of the book highlights John's running adventures in South Africa. At the time, apartheid was the law of the land, but the normally non-political John Tarrant had little use for the country's racist policies. He always had an aversion to authority figures, going back to his years in a London "children's home", so he was not about to bow to the South African government.
Needless to say, John was a tremendously fit man. He ran like a gazelle, never drank or smoked, and he always tried to eat in a healthy fashion. Over the years, however, races were interrupted for John by violent bouts of diarrhea. They came and went over the years, sometimes knocking him out of race and other times just putting him behind the leaders for a short time. Finally, he was diagnosed as having an ulcer, but unfortunately that was an incorrect conclusion. By the time the doctors figured out he had cancer in his stomach it was too late to really save his life. How did such a healthy runner become so sick? For a short time, John worked in factory, cleaning asbestos off brake linings, and that seems the most plausible cause of his cancer.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, even for the reader who has no interest in long distance running. It's the story of a man who never gave up, even with all the powers-to-be against him with all their money and influence. Some may see John Tarrant as a relentless crusader while others may see a pig-headed ne'er-do-well. Perhaps he was both.
May 25, 2025
Inspiring and tragic.
March 15, 2013
It is the 1950s. John Tarrant runs. He runs all over the British countryside for miles around his home and dreams of Olympic Gold. But 17 pounds he accepted for boxing as a teenager makes him a professional - and ineligible for running in any races. So Tarrant invents the "Ghost Runner" - jumping into races without a number - to compete. He pleads his case to the Amateur association. While he has some success, his tale is also filled with heartache.
If you have ever trained for a race, been addicted to running or watched the running events during the Olympics, this is a book for you. In the 1950s and 60s, athletics all around the world were still muddled in the whole idea of the honor of the amateur athlete. In Britain, where most world class runners were educated scholars, the working class man was mostly disqualified by his need to make money - and running couldn't pay the bills. Tarrant is a victim of this system. Is it honor or outright snobbery? But "The Ghost Runner" does not give up. He never stops seeking justice, and never stops running in races even when he's been told "no".
The story is told in a very strait forward manner - which suits Tarrant. For if he was anything, it was honest,forthcoming but above all, determined. Many things about this story go deeper than The Ghost Runner himself - especially his tour of South Africa.
I had never heard of Tarrant before reading this book, and now I will never forget him.
Recommend for: Runners and biography lovers. Honestly, if you love the story of an underdog, Tarrant is definitely all that.
I was provided a copy by the the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.
If you have ever trained for a race, been addicted to running or watched the running events during the Olympics, this is a book for you. In the 1950s and 60s, athletics all around the world were still muddled in the whole idea of the honor of the amateur athlete. In Britain, where most world class runners were educated scholars, the working class man was mostly disqualified by his need to make money - and running couldn't pay the bills. Tarrant is a victim of this system. Is it honor or outright snobbery? But "The Ghost Runner" does not give up. He never stops seeking justice, and never stops running in races even when he's been told "no".
The story is told in a very strait forward manner - which suits Tarrant. For if he was anything, it was honest,forthcoming but above all, determined. Many things about this story go deeper than The Ghost Runner himself - especially his tour of South Africa.
I had never heard of Tarrant before reading this book, and now I will never forget him.
Recommend for: Runners and biography lovers. Honestly, if you love the story of an underdog, Tarrant is definitely all that.
I was provided a copy by the the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.
August 1, 2013
This was a really sad book to read on several levels, firstly because of the incredible hostility shown to John Tarrant by the running community, but then because of the selfishness John showed to his own family.
I for one didn't realise just how different running was back then, now I just enter a race and turn up, but it was so regulated back then that wasn't allowed.
There's a grave injustice in the fact that John should have been allowed to represent his country, he was good enough and he'd earned it, but a petty rule prevented this, coupled with jobsworth officials.
He's an incredibly strong and stubborn character and I found it hard to like him, that said his story made me cry and feel sorry for him. He had a hard life and deserved much better.
Very well written and even if you're not into running this is still a great read.
I for one didn't realise just how different running was back then, now I just enter a race and turn up, but it was so regulated back then that wasn't allowed.
There's a grave injustice in the fact that John should have been allowed to represent his country, he was good enough and he'd earned it, but a petty rule prevented this, coupled with jobsworth officials.
He's an incredibly strong and stubborn character and I found it hard to like him, that said his story made me cry and feel sorry for him. He had a hard life and deserved much better.
Very well written and even if you're not into running this is still a great read.
January 17, 2012
A very unusual and intriguing story of a supremely fit, determined and obstinate man of whom most of the modern running community are likely to be unaware. In a life completely altered by a very minor infraction and brought to a tragic and premature end, there is a depth of courage, stubbornness and feeling rarely witnessed. Although the life of the "ghost" is fully explored, much is revealed in a rather haphazard way. Had a little more care been taken with the prose and penmanship, this could have been a totally compelling read.
August 31, 2014
I read is in two sittings. It really is that compelling, and the story makes your blood boil. No surprise the author won The Times Best New Writer for this book in 2012. I'm now going to buy his new biography of the ice skater John Curry - ALONE - as I've rarely encountered a biography that moved me this much. Highly recommended.
July 6, 2015
Another incredible story from the WWII era. I can't believe with all the runners in my family I hadn't heard of this person. Add to that in the appendix it talks about his brother and when I did the math, there is no way my father didn't know his brother: taught at the same high school for more than 10 years. Truly amazing what we do and don't know about each other.
July 12, 2018
It’s an incredible story, but the writing is painfully bad. Full of pointless supposition and at times self contradictory, it feels like it was written by a student who was trying to hit a word count. A real pity, because the raw material has the potential to be a brilliant book.
July 3, 2017
The Ghost Runner is the simultaneously inspiring and tragic tale of an athlete who fights to overcome a series of difficulties that stand in the way of his dreams.
Exceptionally tough, single-minded and stubborn, John Tarrant is the definition of a dedicated athlete. However, owing to a misdemeanor that is difficult to understand in modern times, he is forced to be an outsider. Coupled with these difficulties presented by the authorities are his own flaws that stand in the way of the complete success he continually dreams of.
While the writing style lacks a certain excitement and fails to develop much momentum, one is nevertheless drawn into the highs and lows of Tarrant's story. Even without being a runner it would be difficult not to admire the gruelling, self-inflicted training programmes he puts himself through, and impossible not to empathise with the position the authorities insist on putting him in.
Set in the 1950-70s, the book provides an interesting insight for the modern reader into the nature of amateurism and sportsmanship of a bygone era. I found this element particularly fascinating as the self-important attitude and arcane rules of this old sporting world were not something I had been aware of.
The book's inspiration lies in the qualities demonstrated by Tarrant himself - of courage and resilience - and complemented by the qualities possessed by those who support him. This includes his utterly selfless wife who sacrifices her own life to satisfy her husband's passion; his loving brother who does everything he can to help him win races; and the various strangers who believe in Tarrant and help him along the way by generously providing moral and financial support.
While there is a good deal of tragedy in John Tarrant's story, I felt that the author was too bent on this aspect. Despite the many successes of Tarrant's career the author mostly focuses on the negative events - devoting long sections to races that Tarrant cared about but failed to win, while briefly describing races he won and giving the impression that these were rare. When reading about Tarrant online I was shocked to realise how many course and world records he set. I thought it was a shame that the book could not be more balanced in its portrayal of these events.
I would recommend The Ghost Runner as an interesting read for all and particularly motivational for long-distance runners.
Exceptionally tough, single-minded and stubborn, John Tarrant is the definition of a dedicated athlete. However, owing to a misdemeanor that is difficult to understand in modern times, he is forced to be an outsider. Coupled with these difficulties presented by the authorities are his own flaws that stand in the way of the complete success he continually dreams of.
While the writing style lacks a certain excitement and fails to develop much momentum, one is nevertheless drawn into the highs and lows of Tarrant's story. Even without being a runner it would be difficult not to admire the gruelling, self-inflicted training programmes he puts himself through, and impossible not to empathise with the position the authorities insist on putting him in.
Set in the 1950-70s, the book provides an interesting insight for the modern reader into the nature of amateurism and sportsmanship of a bygone era. I found this element particularly fascinating as the self-important attitude and arcane rules of this old sporting world were not something I had been aware of.
The book's inspiration lies in the qualities demonstrated by Tarrant himself - of courage and resilience - and complemented by the qualities possessed by those who support him. This includes his utterly selfless wife who sacrifices her own life to satisfy her husband's passion; his loving brother who does everything he can to help him win races; and the various strangers who believe in Tarrant and help him along the way by generously providing moral and financial support.
While there is a good deal of tragedy in John Tarrant's story, I felt that the author was too bent on this aspect. Despite the many successes of Tarrant's career the author mostly focuses on the negative events - devoting long sections to races that Tarrant cared about but failed to win, while briefly describing races he won and giving the impression that these were rare. When reading about Tarrant online I was shocked to realise how many course and world records he set. I thought it was a shame that the book could not be more balanced in its portrayal of these events.
I would recommend The Ghost Runner as an interesting read for all and particularly motivational for long-distance runners.
November 14, 2020
This is the story of a short lived and obscure British runner that started out as a boxer and got paid £17 when he was 17 years old. When John Tarrant took up running, the fact that he had been paid those measly £17 as a boxer made him ineligible to compete in any amateur events. He was outraged by that and decided to run races as a “ghost,” which means he would sneak onto the course at the start of the race and run without a bib. His brother Victor helped him with this and some of those descriptions are pretty funny. Because he was not accepted as an amateur and ran without a bib, his many wins are not recorded in the record books.
The author is British and there are lots of “britishisms” in this book making it almost feel as if I was reading a foreign language, but the humanity in the story comes through loud and clear. John ran all kinds of races including 5ks, 10ks, 10 milers, and Marathons. He got bored with those “short” distances and got into ultra running (50-100 miles and more.)
The final chapters of the book deal with his pursuit of an ultramarathon in South Africa called the Comrades Marathon, and his stomach problems which turn out to be very grave.
I struggled with a lot of the British references and I would have liked to see some notes or a bibliography. It seems like the author did interviews and research but there is nothing backing that up. All in all, though, this was a fascinating read and I would recommend it to runners and non-runners alike.
The author is British and there are lots of “britishisms” in this book making it almost feel as if I was reading a foreign language, but the humanity in the story comes through loud and clear. John ran all kinds of races including 5ks, 10ks, 10 milers, and Marathons. He got bored with those “short” distances and got into ultra running (50-100 miles and more.)
The final chapters of the book deal with his pursuit of an ultramarathon in South Africa called the Comrades Marathon, and his stomach problems which turn out to be very grave.
I struggled with a lot of the British references and I would have liked to see some notes or a bibliography. It seems like the author did interviews and research but there is nothing backing that up. All in all, though, this was a fascinating read and I would recommend it to runners and non-runners alike.
April 21, 2018
The incredible story of a man who never gave up even when all the odds were stacked against him. I recommend this to every runner and everyone else too. This is an inspirational and tragic life story of the greatest runner you have never heard of, John Tarrant.
One man's relentless pursuit to be recognized as a runner. His personal struggles with athletics organizations and their rules about who is allowed and not allowed to compete is a lesson in the double standards in the world of sport.
John's incredible training - running unimaginable distances - his support from his family, even when he is single minded in his pursuit, and his victories and defeats, are fascinating. He is difficult, determined and relentless in his strive to be seen as a runner.
One man's relentless pursuit to be recognized as a runner. His personal struggles with athletics organizations and their rules about who is allowed and not allowed to compete is a lesson in the double standards in the world of sport.
John's incredible training - running unimaginable distances - his support from his family, even when he is single minded in his pursuit, and his victories and defeats, are fascinating. He is difficult, determined and relentless in his strive to be seen as a runner.
July 3, 2020
Mixed Feelings
A well told story of an incredibly driven man, but I have to admit I didn’t know whether to admire or revile him. His pure selfishness made him difficult to warm to, particularly his seemingly total lack of feeling for his wife which seems in contrast to the depths of his love he put on paper to her. Whilst sympathetic to his running battles with the Athletic authorities, it’s difficult to tell if he would have been a success in an international vest as he seems to have as many humiliating failures as triumphant successes. All in all a very odd read.
A well told story of an incredibly driven man, but I have to admit I didn’t know whether to admire or revile him. His pure selfishness made him difficult to warm to, particularly his seemingly total lack of feeling for his wife which seems in contrast to the depths of his love he put on paper to her. Whilst sympathetic to his running battles with the Athletic authorities, it’s difficult to tell if he would have been a success in an international vest as he seems to have as many humiliating failures as triumphant successes. All in all a very odd read.
July 29, 2020
Found this one to read for my occasional book on running. Overall an interesting story with lots of “British-isms” thrown in, which I enjoyed. I’m glad the author was willing to point out some of the character failings of the ghost runner John Tarrant as it would have been easy to leave those out in order to paint an overly cheery picture of some of the choices he made. Plus it’s just more realistic to show the good and the bad. I do wish the author had delved more into the topic of amateurism, which is central to this story, but it never feels like it gets grounded in the context of the era.
December 14, 2017
Bit of a drag. I'm not sure if it's due to the subject being mostly unlikable or the author being sure to cover all details of his life regardless of if they're interesting. His teenage son is writing poetry about mom crying because dad is absent competing in a sport that doesn't want him and half the time he is unable to complete. Due to his stomach issues he's more of a ghost pooper.
October 31, 2023
An absolutely compelling read from start to finish the book actually had me in tears in the closing chapters. If ever anyone was unjustly and undeservingly treated by the blinkered buffoons in sporting authority it was this poor unfortunate highly talented athlete whose honesty was his undoing. A must read…
December 8, 2022
Incredible story of a hard done by athlete who deserved more credit and fair go.
Was hard to read in places and void of emotion in others, repeating facts and clasping for story line. BUT still a good read and worth the time invested.
Was hard to read in places and void of emotion in others, repeating facts and clasping for story line. BUT still a good read and worth the time invested.
December 21, 2017
Interesting book and fascinating background. I couldn’t find much sympathy, though, for The Ghost.
January 31, 2018
I must have been in a bad mood when I read this story. I just felt angry when reading this—mostly at the main character.
May 14, 2018
Tarrant sounds like a horrible toxic man to be around.
April 29, 2020
Great and tragic story and so important that it was shared.......
May 20, 2020
Such a sad but fascinating story
December 4, 2021
Would recommend this to anyone, amazing and tragic story
July 22, 2022
Gripping story of John Tarrant's life. Partly an ode to obsessive running, and partly a social history of how awfully we could treat our fellow humans in the not too distant past.
July 26, 2022
While it will probably appeal to runners more than a general audience, this is a compelling, multi-layered story about a man who deserves to be better known today than he is.
October 11, 2022
What a story. Never heard of John Tarrant before this book. The old amateur athletics code was a joke.
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February 27, 2023
Astonishing story of an incredible man and a shocking insight into british athletic history. Really good biography- if a little sluggish (running pun intended) at times
March 29, 2023
Tragic story of a man trapped in the hypocrisy of 'amateur' athletics in the 1950s to 1970s.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews