News people were holding me up as a symbol of defiance to the boycott and I couldn't even run.

If I performed poorly, I knew the eyes of the sports world would be turned away from me. In that situation I knew the NCAA would crush me for sure. But if I could run well, they would not dare to hit me with everyone looking in my direction. I HAD to have a good race.

I had on my team a girl who at age twelve just missed the world mile record for her age group. But at 20 she just couldn't run.

The best runners every year are those who race out way too fast.

Run with your heart instead of your mind. When you think with your mind, you think of the things you can and can't do. But when you run with your heart you forget about what you can't do, and you just go out and do it.

News people were holding me up as a symbol of defiance to the boycott and I couldn't even run.

After college I picked my races to be one race every two weeks. That gave me time to recover. I raced just as fast as my legs would carry me. At the end of every race there was nothing left. I walked off the track completely spent!