Steve Roland "Pre" Prefontaine was an American middle and long-distance runner who competed in the 1972 Olympics. Here are 20 Motivational Steve Prefontaine Quotes.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes
1. "Somebody may beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it." - Steve Prefontaine
2. "It's not who's the best - it's who can take the most pain." - Steve Prefontaine
3. "I'm going to work so that it's a pure guts race at the end, and if it is, I am the only one who can win it." - Steve Prefontaine
4. "For me, running against the Poles and Czechs would be like running against high school kids. And I hate all this gung-ho, run-for-the-red-white-and-blue attitude that the AAU spouts. If that's important to some people, fine, more power to 'em. But, damn it, I wish they'd leave me alone to do what I want to do - run against the best." - Steve Prefontaine
5. "To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." - Steve Prefontaine
Steve Prefontaine Quotes
6. "Over the years, I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement. " - Steve Prefontaine
7. "A race is a work of art that people can look at and be affected in as many ways as they're capable of understanding." - Steve Prefontaine
8. "This is my last year at Oregon, and it means a lot to me. The people have been great to me up there, so if I have to run three races to win the Pac-8 title, I'll do it. Oh, sure, I'll probably be tired, but the people shouting will carry me across the finish line." - Steve Prefontaine
9. "Some people create with words, or with music, or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run. I like to make people stop and say, 'I've never seen anyone run like that before.' It's more than just a race, it's style. It's doing something better than everyone else. It's being creative." - Steve Prefontaine
10. "I have a positive mental attitude, and I think I'm divine, but I also think it takes a heck of a lot of blood, sweat and tears. " - Steve Prefontaine
Steve Prefontaine Quotes
11. "What I like most about track is the feeling I get inside after a good run." - Steve Prefontaine
12. "If you can make money with your talents, why not?" - Steve Prefontaine
13. "There are big odds against me. Nobody under 25 has ever won the Olympic five. But if everything goes right, whoever wins will know he has been in one helluva race." - Steve Prefontaine
14. "My philosophy is that I'm an artist. I perform an art not with a paint brush or a camera. I perform with bodily movement. Instead of exhibiting my art in a museum or a book or on canvas, I exhibit my art in front of the multitudes. " - Steve Prefontaine
15. "A lot of people run a race to see who is the fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more." - Steve Prefontaine
Steve Prefontaine Quotes
16. "Something inside of me just said 'Hey, wait a minute, I want to beat him,' and I just took off. " - Steve Prefontaine
17. "It really gets grim until the competition begins. You have to wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years, I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement." - Steve Prefontaine
18. "Nobody likes tainted victories. " - Steve Prefontaine
19. "I'll tell you one thing. I love every one of them. I've thought about the Olympic Games every day of my life since 1968, but there is a breaking point in each race when you wonder if all the sacrifice is really worth it. You think 'why should I do this? I don't have to run this hard.' But that's when I think about them. They keep me going." - Steve Prefontaine
20. "No one will ever win a 5,000-meter by running an easy two miles. Not against me. " - Steve Prefontaine