No longer conscious of my movement, I discovered a new unity with nature. I had found a new source of power and beauty, a source I never dreamt existed.

It seems quite impossible to walk in America.

It is the brain, not the heart or lungs, that is the critical organ.

I've always been very impatient. At age 10 I frankly found life boring, and I can remember age 9 having the awful thought, as it seems now looking back on it, A war! That should liven things up a bit!

It's amazing that more people have climbed Mount Everest than have broken the 4-minute mile.

I came from such a simple origin, without any great privilege, and I would say I also wanted to make a mark. It wasn't until I was about 15 that I appeared in a race.

If I faltered, there would be no arms to hold me and the world would be a cold and forbidding place.