"I wanted to be famous. I wanted people to talk about me."
"Many people know that Ethiopia is poor. When I break a world record, maybe people get to know something else about Ethiopia, something good. We can't make planes or cars, we don't have the materials. We do what we can."
"I'm never satisfied."
"I was the kind of child who worked hard every day with the cows and sheep - I was a very aggressive boy."
"When I had no shoes I was comfortable - I used to run barefoot. When I wore shoes it was difficult. To run in shoes was ok, but at the beginning of my career it was hard."
"Life is a kind of struggle. Life is a sort of fight."
"My father didn't think running was sensible. He told me running is just wasting time."
"I want to avoid injuries by running only road."
"If I don't train enough, of course I'm nervous."
"The marathon always starts after 30K. That's where the problems start. You start without any problems, without any pain. All the pain comes after 30K. Sometimes, it's possible to have pain even in the finger."
"For me a day without training is like a day without eating."
"At the end of the day, people want to see how fast you run."
"If you are a really good marathoner, you have to run New York."
"If you're planning only to make money and nothing else, you'll be broke."
"Once you have commitment, you need the discipline and hard work to get you there."
"When I wake up at 5 in the morning is it just to jog? Definitely not, I give it all of my efforts."
"If your body is damaged, wounded, it can be fixed, but if inside, mentally, you are wounded you cannot fix it, it's hard."
"Age for me is just a number."
