Michael Johnson Quotes & Sayings

“Life is often compared to a marathon, but I think it is more like being a sprinter; long stretches of hard work punctuated by brief moments in which we are given the opportunity to perform at our best.”

“They don't give you gold medals for beating somebody. They give you gold medals for beating everybody.”

“The mind is absolutely instrumental in achieving results, even for athletes. Sports psychology is a very small part, but it's extremely important when you're winning and losing races by hundredths and even thousandths of a second.”

“All my life I believed I became an athlete through my own determination, but it's impossible to think that being descended from slaves hasn't left an imprint through the generations. Difficult as it was to hear, slavery has benefited descendants like me - I believe there is a superior athletic gene in us.”

“I've had to learn that not everybody does things my way. But I do expect the absolute best of everyone around me, and I'm disappointed when people don't expect that of themselves.”

“The only one who can beat me is me.”

“All my life I believed I became an athlete through my own determination, but it's impossible to think that being descended from slaves hasn't left an imprint through the generations.”

“There's a complete difference between training for a specific event and goal and just training.”

“Difficult as it was to hear, slavery has benefited descendants like me - I believe there is a superior athletic gene in us.”

“I don't always do a lot of predicting, but, when I get a really strong feeling about something, I will tell people.”