Inspirational Quotations

Inspirational Quotes by Jesse Owens (American Athlete)

Jesse Owens (1913–80,) fully Jesse James Cleveland Owens, was an American track-and-field athlete who was considered the greatest sprinter of his generation. His success (as a black man) at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin outraged Adolf Hitler, who intended to use the Games to demonstrate Aryan superiority.

Born in Oakville, Alabama, Owens gained national attention when he equaled the world record of 9.4 seconds in the 100-yard sprint as a student of East Technical High School, Cleveland. While playing for the Ohio State University team in the 1935 Big Ten track tournament in Ann Arbor, Michigan, he set three world records. He equaled another (all within the space of an hour,) including the long jump (26 ft 8 1/4 in,) which remained unbeaten for 25 years.

At the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Owens won four gold medals (100 m, 200 m, long jump, and 100 m relay,) which caused Adolf Hitler to leave the stadium to avoid congratulating a black non-Aryan athlete.

Back in the USA, Owens gained no recognition for his feat. He held menial jobs as a gas station attendant, playground janitor, and supervisor of a dry cleaning business—he even ran ‘freak’ races against horses and dogs to make a living.

After retiring from the competitive track, Owens made goodwill visits to India and East Asia for the U.S. government, served as an executive of the Illinois State Athletic Commission, and worked in public relations.

Owens’ life was portrayed in the Emmy-winning biopic The Jesse Owens Story (1984.) William J Baker wrote the biography Jesse Owens: An American Life (1986.)

More: Wikipedia READ: Works by Jesse Owens

Awards become corroded, friends gather no dust.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Friendship, Friends

People come out to see you perform and you’ve got to give them the best you have within you. The lives of most men are patchwork quilts. Or at best one matching outfit with a closet and laundry bag full of incongruous accumulations. A lifetime of training for just ten seconds.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Excellence

To me, we must learn to spell the word RESPECT. We must respect the rights and properties of our fellowman. And then learn to play the game of life, as well as the game of athletics, according to the rules of society. If you can take that and put it into practice in the community in which you live, then, to me you have won the greatest championship.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Society

One chance is all you need.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Chance

If you don’t try to win you might as well hold the Olympics in somebody’s back yard. The thrill of competing carries with it the thrill of a gold medal. One wants to win to prove himself the best.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Winners, Winning

We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Determination, Dedication

I always loved running—it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs.
Jesse Owens
Topics: Enjoyment

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