Haile Gebrselassie Quotes
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Life is a kind of struggle. Life is a sort of fight.
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Once you have commitment, you need the discipline and hard work to get you there.
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What can you do if a part of it is uphill? You can't work out another route. You've just got to run the one they give you. But they tell me London is a nice course. Even the cobbles, I hope, are not very much of a problem for me.
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Age for me is just a number.
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When I had no shoes I was comfortable - I used to run barefoot. When I wore shoes it was difficult. To run in shoes was ok, but at the beginning of my career it was hard.
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I want to avoid injuries by running only road.
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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.
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Why should I say I will retire in three or four years? You retire the very moment you utter those words.
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If I don't train enough, of course I'm nervous.
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I know what I want when I start a marathon: to win! But what do you want? Make sure you're clear in advance and don't go out too fast.
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I haven't done a marathon for a long time. So we'll see. I will need good luck.
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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.
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I'm a runner first before anything else.
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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.
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I have to change a lot of things before I become a good marathon runner.
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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.
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You must do as your people do. If my people are poor, I must be poor. People ask me, 'Why don't you find a personal coach or a private car?' I can't. Then I won't be part of my people.
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At the end of the day, people want to see how fast you run.
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I can't change everything by myself but I can be one of the people who are trying to change the situation.
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This is what I wanted. They tell me that London is the best field in history. I wanted to be part of that. Because everyone will be there it will be a wonderful challenge for me. You can see the best runners, how they look, how they run. For me to beat the best is what counts.
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I was the kind of child who worked hard every day with the cows and sheep - I was a very aggressive boy.
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Athletics is in my blood.
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My school was six miles away from where I lived on the farm. I had to walk and run, there and back every day, through gorges and over rivers. If I was late, there was a very big stick waiting for me.
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If your body is damaged, wounded, it can be fixed, but if inside, mentally, you are wounded you cannot fix it, it's hard.