Steve “Pre” Prefontaine is a legend in the track and field and sporting world. He was a distance runner and a member of the 1972 US Olympic team. He died early in a tragic car accident at the age of 24, but not before starting a trend that led to the boom of runners in the 70s. Steve Prefontaine Quotes are legendary like the athlete himself. They make you think, but best of all they make you a better athlete and person.
The Steve Prefontaine quotes will pick you up when you don’t think you have enough. They are great for runners of course, but they apply to all athletes that are trying to find how deep they can go. The quotes even refer to people just working to live their best lives outside of sports.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – Find Your Art
“A race is a work of art that people can look at and be affected in as many ways as they’re capable of understanding.”
Meaning – The beauty of this quote is in the fact that it has two implications. If you run, you can understand that what you are doing is a beautiful thing and it should not be taking for granted. When you step on that track, you are making art that an observer can understand in so many different ways.
The second meaning is in the fact that anyone can use their gifts to make something beautiful. Steve was given the gift of running, for you it may be something else. No matter what it is, you must use it to make art.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – Never Make It Easy For Them
“Somebody may beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it.”
Meaning – Never give people an easy route to beating you. Losing happens but make sure that if you lose, your competitors respect you for making them push.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – It Takes Guts
“I’m going to work so that it’s a pure guts race at the end, and if it is, I am the only one who can win it.”
Meaning – Be tougher! We live in a world now that no longer loves the idea of being tough. Sometimes you have to get tough and see who can hold on at the end.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – The Gift
“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.”
Meaning – People often cheat themselves by giving less than their best. Talent will only take you so far, and by not providing a sincere effort, you are NOT taking advantage of the gift.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – More Than a Race
“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 style. It’s doing something better than everyone else. It’s being creative.”
Meaning – No matter what you do there is always more to it. You could be running, driving a bus or answering phone calls and there can still be a deeper meaning for why it matters. When you dig deep and find that meaning, it adds depth to your life.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – No Easy Buckets
“No one will ever win a 5,000-meter by running an easy two miles. Not against me.”
Meaning – Everyone around you is looking for an easy way to get what they want. Always make sure that the easy route is never through you.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – The Odds
“There are big odds against me. Nobody under 25 has ever won the Olympic five. But if everything goes right, whoever wins will know he has been in one helluva race.”
Meaning – Always be willing to go up against the odds! Be confident in the fact that no matter the result you will be ok because you know you will give everything that you have.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – Gut Punishment
“A lot of people run a race to see who is the fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more.”
Meaning – Again, a quote with a deeper meaning. The race is not about just running to win but also seeing how far you can push yourself and others.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – Keep At It
“It really gets grim until the competition begins. You have to wonder at times what you’re doing out there. Over the years, I’ve given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement.”
Meaning – When things get tough, you have to remember why you started putting in work in the first place. You have to give yourself more reasons to keep going than you could ever come up with to stop. In the end, the feeling of satisfaction that you will have will be worth it.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – The Sacrifice
“I’ll tell you one thing. I love every one of them. I’ve thought about the Olympic Games every day of my life since 1968, but there is a breaking point in each race when you wonder if all the sacrifice is worth it. You think ‘why I should do this? I don’t have to run this hard.’ But that’s when I think about them. They keep me going.”
Meaning – When you get to the point in a race or in life where you want to stop, you have to think about that goal that you want to achieve, and it will give you the strength to push a bit harder.
Steve Prefontaine Quotes – Time to Die
“The best pace is suicide pace, and today looks like a good day to die!”
How Will You Use These Steve Prefontaine Quotes?
You have a choice now. You can just read these and glide along with your life, or you can use them to be better. Some people read books to check a box, and others use them to change their life. Which type of person are you?
