The only tactics I admire are do-or-die

Poetry, music, forests, oceans, solitude-they were what developed enormous spiritual strength. I came to realize that spirit, as much or more than physical conditioning, had to be stored up before a race.

The greatest stimulator of my running career was fear.

I have never been a killer. I'm not an aggressive personality and if I can remember any emotion I felt during a race it was fear. The greatest stimulator of my running was fear.

The single biggest change in middle-distance running, from the 1500 metres to 10,000 metres, has been the track surface.

Training was a time where resolutions made in the enthusiasm of an inspired moment were put to personal test.

I hadn't a clue who I was racing against. All I knew was how I was going to race.