I wanted no part of politics. And I wasn't in Berlin to compete against any one athlete. The purpose of the Olympics, anyway, was to do your best. As I'd learned long ago from Charles Riley, the only victory that… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
When I passed the Chancellor he arose, waved his hand at me, and I waved back at him. I think the writers showed bad… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
I'd noticed him watching me for a year or so, especially when we'd play games where there was running or jumping. — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
When I came back, after all those stories about Hitler and his snub, I came back to my native country, and I could not… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
Joe Louis and I were the first modern national sports figures who were black... But neither of us could do national advertising because the… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
The secret is, first, get a thoroughbred horse because they are the most nervous animals on earth. Then get the biggest gun you can… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
It all goes so fast, and character makes the difference when it's close — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
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… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
To a sprinter, the hundred-yard dash is over in three seconds, not nine or ten. The first 'second' is when you come out of… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
It dawned on me with blinding brightness. I realized: I had jumped into another rare kind of stratosphere - one that only a handful… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
I always loved running... it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
We used to have a lot of fun. We never had any problems. We always ate. The fact that we didn't have steak? Who… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
She (Minnie Ruth Solomon) was unusual because even though I knew her family was as poor as ours, nothing she said or did seemed… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
There is something that can happen to every athlete and every human being; the instinct to slack off, to give in to pain, to… — Jesse Owens Copy Share Image
