Top 10 Quotes & Sayings by Herb Elliott

Explore popular quotes and sayings by an Australian athlete Herb Elliott.

Last updated on December 21, 2024.

Herbert James Elliott is a former Australian athlete and arguably the world's greatest middle distance runner of his era. In August 1958 he set the world record in the mile run, clocking 3:54.5, 2.7 seconds under the record held by Derek Ibbotson; later in the month he set the 1500 metres world record, running 3.36.0, 2.1 seconds under the record held by Stanislav Jungwirth. In the 1500 metres at the 1960 Rome Olympics, he won the gold medal and bettered his own world record with a time of 3:35.6.

Australian - Athlete | Born: February 25, 1938

Source: Wikipedia

The greatest stimulator of my running career was fear.

Herb Elliott

It is the inspiration of the Olympic Games that drives people not only to compete but to improve, and to bring lasting spiritual and moral benefits to the athlete and inspiration to those lucky enough to witness the athletic dedication.

Herb Elliott

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

Herb Elliott

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.

Herb Elliott

The only tactics I admire are do-or-die

Herb Elliott

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.

Herb Elliott

I had a dual goal in my running that was to win and to achieve excellence, so I was never happy with a slow tactical time. If the race were slow I would get in front and pull it up again. I couldn't stand a slow race. A lot of people seem to get screwed up on tactics. There is only one tactic in a race and that is to always be in a position where you can win it.

Herb Elliott

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

Herb Elliott

The important thing is the attitude of the athlete, the desire to get to the top.

Herb Elliott

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

Herb Elliott