Author Carla Mooney explores African American involvement in sports in the United States from the nineteenth century to the present. Blacks' participation in horse racing, track and field, baseball, basketball, golf, tennis, and boxing are all covered. The book relates the accomplishments of trailblazers as well as the discrimination, insults, and physical violence they endured to open the doors of opportunity for black athletes around the country. The achievements of modern sports stars are also discussed and sidebars feature brief biographies of both pioneers and superstars.