A runner must run with dreams in his heart, not money in his pocket.

An athlete cannot run with money in his pockets. He must run with hope in his heart and dreams in his head.

Great is the victory, but the friendship of all is greater.

If one can stick to the training throughout the many long years, then will power is no longer a problem. It’s raining? That doesn’t matter. I am tired? That’s besides the point. It’s simply that I just have to.

If you want to run, run a mile. If you want to experience a different life, run a marathon.

It’s at the borders of pain and suffering that the men are separated from the boys.

Men, today we die a little.

My running was very simple; it was out of myself.

The athlete of today is not an athlete alone. He’s the center of a team – doctors, scientists, coaches, agents and so on.

There is a great advantage in training under unfavorable conditions. It is better to train under bad conditions, for the difference is then a tremendous relief in a race.

To boast of a performance which I cannot beat is merely stupid vanity. And if I can beat it that means there is nothing special about it. What has passed is already finished with. What I find more interesting is what is still to come.

We are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon.

What has passed is already finished with. What I find more interesting is what is still to come.

When I was young, I was too slow. I thought I must learn to run fast by practicing to run fast, so I ran 100 meters fast 20 times. Then I came back, slow, slow, slow.

Why should I practice running slow? I already know how to run slow. I want to learn to run fast.

You can’t climb up to the second floor without a ladder. When you set your aim too high and don’t fulfill it, then your enthusiasm turns to bitterness. Try for a goal that’s reasonable, and then gradually raise it.