Athlete Quotes

Many people know that Ethiopia is poor. When I break a world record, maybe people get to know something else about Ethiopia, something good. We can't make planes or cars, we don't have the materials. We do what we can.

I have to change a lot of things before I become a good marathon runner.

At the moment I am a little bit politician, yes. I think that could be my next step. It is not because I want power, it is because of what I think I could do for the people.

You know the marathon in my country is just exceptional. It's like soccer in England. If England win the world cup and Ethiopia win the marathon - it's the same.

If I don't train enough, of course I'm nervous.

That is not enough. Sport has been great for me, a great learning place that if you want to achieve you can, even if you are from the poorest part of Africa.

He was not a runner, my father, but he was quick. I always remember it was very difficult to escape from him when he was angry. If he wanted to beat us he would always catch us. Even me, he could always catch me.

The more you are getting older, you lose a little something. Of course there is another advantage, because of your long experience you can use it.

Eradicate poverty. This is all that matters in my country. When I am out training I think about this a lot; when I am running it is going over in my mind. As a country we cannot move forward until we eradicate poverty.

Once you have commitment, you need the discipline and hard work to get you there.

I haven't done a marathon for a long time. So we'll see. I will need good luck.

In my life I do a lot of things but I never forget my training.

When you promise something, you must fulfill it.

Always, if you win mentally, you can win physically as well.

When you run the marathon, you run against the distance, not against the other runners and not against the time.

I will always listen to my coaches. But first I listen to my body. If what they tell me suits my body, great. If my body doesn't feel good with what they say, then always my body comes first.

For me a day without training is like a day without eating.

In the rainy season, sometimes to get to the first lesson we had to run really quick, because we had to cross the river to school and we'd have to go up and down the bank to find a place to cross because there is no bridge.

First, do enough training. Then believe in yourself and say: I can do it. Tomorrow is my day. And then say: the person in front of me, he is just a human being as well; he has two legs, I have two legs, that is all. That is mentally how you prepare.

The greatest memory for me of the 1984 Olympics was not the individual honors, but standing on the podium with my teammates to receive our team gold medal.

A team championship doesn't happen because three people score 10s, it happens because all the guys score well. In my opinion, everyone deserved 10s, we're all 10s on this team.

When I grew up Carl Lewis was still running, Maurice Greene was running - he was that figure I see, like Michael Johnson. I really wanted to look up to the fast guys - so those two guys were some of the guys I looked up to.

My daughter's mother and I are no longer dating, and the people I'm most likely to date are those around me, who are athletes.

I've really learned over the years how to control my adrenaline and let it all out when they shoot the gun versus letting the crowd and the lights and the camera get to me.

I've dated athletes before but it's too tough because we have the same job, we deal with the same problems and both do a very selfish sport.

I'm 29 years old and, sure, I'm looking to find a wife.

I want to find that defining moment that you're satisfied and you've done what you want to do in your life.

I save the race for the race and I don't let it all out in practice.

I played football in high school, I played baseball when I was younger, things like that, but I think it was the passion I had for track where you want to do an individual sport and be the best, I think - there's nothing that can replace that.

I eat 230 grams of protein daily, 308 grams of carbohydrates, maybe 70 grams of fat. I can have one cheat meal a week but it can't be that I eat until I'm stuffed; I eat until I'm satisfied.