Track and Field Quotes from Running Athletes
- “Running is a road map to self-awareness and discovery.” – Martyn Rooney (British sprinter)
- “It’s very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit.” – George Sheehan (Runner and author)
- “You have to forget your last race before you run your next. You have to forget your mistakes.” – Steve Prefontaine (Legendary American distance runner)
- “If you aren’t going all the way, why go at all?” – Florence Griffith Joyner (Iconic American sprinter)
- “The human spirit can handle much more than we realize. It matters how you are going to finish. Are you going to finish strong?” – Eliud Kipchoge (Kenyan marathon world record holder)
- “The will to win means nothing without the will to prepare.” – Juma Ikangaa (Tanzanian marathon runner)
- “The gun goes off and everything changes… the world changes… time changes. No longer fractions of a second… now it’s all of time… in one breath… one moment… forever.” – Bill Bowerman (Co-founder of Nike and legendary track coach)
- “The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.” – John Bingham (American marathon runner and author)
- “Run when you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must; just never give up.” – Dean Karnazes (American ultramarathon runner and author)
- “I don’t run to add days to my life, I run to add life to my days.” – Ronald Rook (Retired U.S. Marine Corp. and marathon runner)
- “Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it.” – Oprah Winfrey (While known for media, she is also a runner)
- “Running allows me to set my mind free. Nothing seems impossible. Nothing unattainable.” – Kara Goucher (American long-distance runner and author)
- “A runner must run with dreams in his heart, not money in his pocket.” – Emil Zátopek (Czech long-distance runner)
- “Don’t dream of winning, train for it!” – Mo Farah (British former long-distance runner)
- “The only way to define your limits is by going beyond them.” – Arthur Clarke (While known as a science fiction writer, he was also a keen runner in his younger years)
Written by Katie McDonald, 9th May 2025
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