--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Competing is exciting and winning is…" description: "\"Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the true prize will always be the self-knowledge and understanding that you have gained along th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png" --- # Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the… ![“Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the true prize will always be the self-knowledge and understanding that you have gained along the way.” quote by Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png) > “Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the true prize will always be the self-knowledge and understanding that you have gained along the way.” [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success is less about external victory and more about the personal insight gained through competition. **In simple terms:** Winning teaches self‑knowledge. Key Takeaway Value personal growth over trophies. Themes competition self‑development achievement Mood reflective inspirational Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - sports - career - personal projects - education Key Concepts psychology reflection learning Questions to Reflect On - How can you measure personal insight? - What does self‑knowledge enable you to do? A Different Perspective Self‑knowledge may be overlooked in pursuit of external rewards. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Competing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competing/) [Competing Exciting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competing-exciting-2139949/) [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [Exciting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exciting/) [Exhilarating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exhilarating/) [Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football/) [Knowledge and understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge-and-understanding/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Prize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prize/) [Prize Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prize-self-2139950/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-discipline/) [Self knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-knowledge/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Winning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winning/) [Winning Exhilarating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winning-exhilarating-2139948/) ## Related quotes > [I've always been a believer in research. It's great to have an instinctual human reaction to a character, too, of course, but it has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chiwetel-ejiofor/i-ve-always-been-a-believer-in-research-it-s-great-to-have-an/) [Chiwetel Ejiofor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chiwetel-ejiofor/) > [Don't accept anything saying its your fate because your fate is determined by your faith, your knowledge and understanding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-matobo/don-t-accept-anything-saying-its-your-fate-because-your-fate-is/) [Frank Matobo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-matobo/) > [Patience is a godly attribute that can heal souls, unlock treasures of knowledge and understanding, and transform ordinary men and women into saints and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/patience-is-a-godly-attribute-that-can-heal-souls-unlock-treasures-of/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [“Common people tend to term any kind of bizarre phenomenon as “paranormal” or “supernatural”. They often exaggerate it as the work of the Gods.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/common-people-tend-to-term-any-kind-of-bizarre-phenomenon-as/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [It's such a wonderful thing to be uniquely different, be who God called you to be regardless of your knowing or unknowing mistakes. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-lynn/it-s-such-a-wonderful-thing-to-be-uniquely-different-be-who-god/) [Patricia Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-lynn/) > [“I strongly believe that teachers need to tell students about great lives and make children understand their history and heritage. It is only through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-p-j-abdul-kalam-2/i-strongly-believe-that-teachers-need-to-tell-students-about-great/) [A.P.J. Abdul Kalam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-p-j-abdul-kalam-2/) > [If you think you're going to have an eternity in which you can talk to Mozart and Chopin and Schopenhauer on a cloud and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/if-you-think-you-re-going-to-have-an-eternity-in-which-you-can-talk/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [“Science is a human construct. Scientific laws are as valid as our understanding at any particular moment. Scientific laws are not absolute. Scientific laws…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/science-is-a-human-construct-scientific-laws-are-as-valid-as-our/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [“A woman is like a universe; there are many things that even she still needs to discover about herself. Men on the other hand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lebo-grand/a-woman-is-like-a-universe-there-are-many-things-that-even-she-still/) [Lebo Grand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lebo-grand/) > [All civilization in a sense exists only in the mind. Gunpowder, textile arts, machinery, laws, telephones are not themselves transmitted from man to man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-l-kroeber/all-civilization-in-a-sense-exists-only-in-the-mind-gunpowder-textile/) [Alfred L. Kroeber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-l-kroeber/) > [“No matter how much you know, your destiny depends on the Wisdom, Knowledge and Understanding you display.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-c-uwandu/no-matter-how-much-you-know-your-destiny-depends-on-the-wisdom/) [James C. Uwandu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-c-uwandu/) > [I think the reason why I haven't done a film in India so far is because I haven't found a script that's completely gotten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freida-pinto/i-think-the-reason-why-i-haven-t-done-a-film-in-india-so-far-is/) [Freida Pinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freida-pinto/) > [Our knowledge and understanding of nonhuman animals is polluted far more than we acknowledge by our belief in our own superiority, our unrecognized cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-tuttle/our-knowledge-and-understanding-of-nonhuman-animals-is-polluted-far/) [Will Tuttle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-tuttle/) > [The true foundation of all culture is the knowledge and understanding of water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-schauberger/the-true-foundation-of-all-culture-is-the-knowledge-and-understanding/) [Viktor Schauberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-schauberger/) > [From the FA to UEFA and FIFA, there's a naivety, a lack of knowledge and understanding and packed with people who are out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-best/from-the-fa-to-uefa-and-fifa-there-s-a-naivety-a-lack-of-knowledge/) [George Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-best/) ## More by Sebastian Coe > [Sport was an integral part of school life. The most influential teachers were not necessarily the PE teachers, but the teachers who helped me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/sport-was-an-integral-part-of-school-life-the-most-influential/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [Marathons don't come to you overnight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/marathons-don-t-come-to-you-overnight/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [Blink and you miss a sprint. The 10,000 meters is lap after lap of waiting. Theatrically, the mile is just the right length: beginning,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/blink-and-you-miss-a-sprint-the-10-000-meters-is-lap-after-lap-of/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [I don't think I am a workaholic. I prefer to keep busy. It is better than the alternative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/i-don-t-think-i-am-a-workaholic-i-prefer-to-keep-busy-it-is-better/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [I will go to my grave believing that participation is best driven by the well-stocked shop window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/i-will-go-to-my-grave-believing-that-participation-is-best-driven-by/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [Tomorrow is another day, and there will be another battle!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/tomorrow-is-another-day-and-there-will-be-another-battle/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [I'm probably one of the few people who can say I did all three types of state sector schooling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/i-m-probably-one-of-the-few-people-who-can-say-i-did-all-three-types/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [If you lived in Sheffield and were called Sebastian, you had to learn to run fast at a very early stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/if-you-lived-in-sheffield-and-were-called-sebastian-you-had-to-learn/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [I believed that we had to answer the question: Why are we doing this? And it wasn’t until we started to articulate, internally as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/i-believed-that-we-had-to-answer-the-question-why-are-we-doing-this/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [Everybody recognises that giving young people competitive outlet through sport is a very good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/everybody-recognises-that-giving-young-people-competitive-outlet/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [You hope all good athletes run on the balls of their feet. You don't want them coming down heel first. The perfect style is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/you-hope-all-good-athletes-run-on-the-balls-of-their-feet-you-don-t/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [Football was not what I was put on this planet to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/football-was-not-what-i-was-put-on-this-planet-to-do/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [To anyone who has started out on a long campaign believing that the gold medal was destined for him, the feeling when, all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/to-anyone-who-has-started-out-on-a-long-campaign-believing-that-the/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [Getting the Games for London has been the fulfilment of a dream. It is one which I truly believe can change the lives of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/getting-the-games-for-london-has-been-the-fulfilment-of-a-dream-it-is/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) > [It is really important that we promote competitive support in schools. It is very important that we recognise that has to be underpinned by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/it-is-really-important-that-we-promote-competitive-support-in-schools/) [Sebastian Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) [Explore all 82 Sebastian Coe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/) ## More Competing quotes > [When you reach that competing point, when you reach that time when the gun is about to go off, everyone's level is pretty much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/apolo-ohno/when-you-reach-that-competing-point-when-you-reach-that-time-when-the/) [Apolo Ohno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/apolo-ohno/) > [Popular culture as a whole is popular, but in today's fragmented market it's a jostle of competing unpopular popular cultures. As the critic Stanley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/popular-culture-as-a-whole-is-popular-but-in-today-s-fragmented/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [I have no social life. There is no time for one. Once in a while I may go to dinner with a friend but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-halliday/i-have-no-social-life-there-is-no-time-for-one-once-in-a-while-i-may/) [Liz Halliday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-halliday/) > [I competed every day as a professional football player... You've got to like competing. That's how your team gets better, when you have competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herm-edwards/i-competed-every-day-as-a-professional-football-player-you-ve-got-to/) [Herm Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herm-edwards/) > [There are 16 year olds competing at the olympics and i still push on pull doors & struggle getting through the whole day without a nap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-eastwood/there-are-16-year-olds-competing-at-the-olympics-and-i-still-push-on/) [Scott Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-eastwood/) > [I love nothing more than going out there and competing. And baseball's my outlet to do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-fried/i-love-nothing-more-than-going-out-there-and-competing-and-baseball-s/) [Max Fried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-fried/) > [I've always worked closely with the designers and whoever's making the costumes. Comfort is the last thing you want on your mind when you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristi-yamaguchi/i-ve-always-worked-closely-with-the-designers-and-whoever-s-making/) [Kristi Yamaguchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristi-yamaguchi/) > [I don't think anybody who carries a rifle carries the future. Because I don't believe that you can really change the world by killing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/i-don-t-think-anybody-who-carries-a-rifle-carries-the-future-because/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [America breeds ambition and while that can be a good thing, sometimes it's not. Ambition also breeds competition and that can be a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaka-khan/america-breeds-ambition-and-while-that-can-be-a-good-thing-sometimes/) [Chaka Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaka-khan/) > [I'll miss the competitive side and the camaraderie of being around the players and competing each and every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scottie-pippen/i-ll-miss-the-competitive-side-and-the-camaraderie-of-being-around/) [Scottie Pippen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scottie-pippen/) > [Being away from the game and just remembering why I love competing and all of that, I think it helped me tremendously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-keys/being-away-from-the-game-and-just-remembering-why-i-love-competing/) [Madison Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-keys/) > [Competing is intense among humans, and within a group, selfish individuals always win. But in contests between groups, groups of altruists always beat groups…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/competing-is-intense-among-humans-and-within-a-group-selfish/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [We're competing against other great cities: Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, and Tokyo. That's why it's important that we all join together on the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-daley/we-re-competing-against-other-great-cities-madrid-rio-de-janeiro-and/) [Richard M. Daley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-daley/) > [That this is not a sense of innovation and competition increasing prices because some other company is coming in and competing with Martin Shkreli.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-ann-reid/that-this-is-not-a-sense-of-innovation-and-competition-increasing/) [Joy-Ann Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-ann-reid/) > [Some people steal from others, or defraud them, or enslave them, seizing their product and preventing them from living as they choose, or forcibly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-nozick/some-people-steal-from-others-or-defraud-them-or-enslave-them-seizing/) [Robert Nozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-nozick/) [Browse all 1,003 Competing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the true prize will always be the self-knowledge and understanding that you have gained along the way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sebastian Coe" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exhilarating-but-the-true-prize/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Competing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exhilarating-but-the-true-prize/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/sebastian-coe-8305_competing_competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exh_206232.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Competing is exciting and winning is exhilarating, but the true prize will always be the self-knowledge and…” — Sebastian Coe", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sebastian Coe", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-coe/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Competing is exciting and winning is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exhilarating-but-the-true-prize/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-coe/competing-is-exciting-and-winning-is-exhilarating-but-the-true-prize/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```