If he's having a good day and running the right race, nobody can beat Frank Shorter at 10,000 meters... nobody except me.

No one will ever win a 5,000-meter by running an easy two miles. Not against me.

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 a style. It's doing something better than anyone else. It's being creative.

Some people create with words or with music or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run

Something inside of me just said 'Hey, wait a minute, I want to beat him,' and I just took off.

Every once in a while I think, 'What am I doing out here running, busting myself up? Life could be so much easier. The other guys are out having fun, doing other things, why not me?'

When people go to a track meet, they're looking for something, a world record, something that hasn't been done before. You get all this magnetic energy, people focusing on one thing at the same time. I really get excited about it. It makes me want to compete even more. It makes it all worthwhile, all the hours of hard work.