Essential Experience

We are different, in essence, from other men.  If you want to win something, run 100 meters.  If you want to experience something, run a marathon.
—    Emil Zatopek
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One More Rung

You can’t climb up to the second floor without a ladder.  When you set your aim too high and don’t fulfill it, then your enthusiasm turns to bitterness.  Try for a goal that’s reasonable, and then gradually raise it.
—    Emil Zatopek
[Slowly, slowly; step by step; one rung of the ladder at a time…   —    KMAB]
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Bordering Manhood

It’s at the borders of pain and suffering that the men are separated from the boys.
—    Emil Zatopek
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I Just Have To

If one can stick to the training throughout the many long years, then will power is no longer a problem.  It’s raining?  That doesn’t matter.  I am tired?  That’s besides the point.  It’s simply that I just have to.
—  Emil Zatopek
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Known Knowns

Why should I practice running slow?  I already know how to run slow.  I want to learn to run fast.
—    Emil Zatopek
[Zatopek is widely (and certainly by me) considered to be one of the greatest runners of the 20th century (I would say recorded history).  In the 1952 Summer Olympics, Zatopek won the gold medal in the 5K, 10K and in the marathon.  It was the first time he EVER competed in a marathon.
I know what it feels like to run slow (slow jog = slog) and I remember what it was like to run fast (well, fast for me anyway).  I would love to feel that sensation again.
“I have raced the wind
And had it in my face,“
—    KMAB]
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