Here are 15 of his pearls of wisdom:
1. “The true runner is a very fortunate person. He has found something in him that is just perfect.”
2. “To know you are one with what you are doing, to know that you are a complete athlete, begins with believing you are a runner.”
3. “The difference between a jogger and a runner is an entry blank.”
4. “The most important thing I learned from running is that there is only one runner in this race, and that is me.”
5. “Have you ever felt worse after a run?”
6. “Of all the races, there is no better stage for heroism than a marathon.”
7. “Out on the roads there is fitness and self-discovery and the persons we were destined to be.”
8. “Sweat cleanses from the inside. It comes from places a shower will never reach.”
9. “Fitness is a stage you pass through on the way to becoming a racer.”
10. “The music of a marathon is a powerful strain, one of those tunes of glory. It asks us to forsake pleasures, to discipline the body, to find courage, to renew faith and to become one's own person, utterly and completely.”
11. “The athlete must accept pain—not only accept it, but look for it, live with it, learn not to fear it.”
12. “Running is a monastery—a retreat, a place to commune with God and yourself, a place for psychological and spiritual renewal.”
13. “The mind's first step to self-awareness must be through the body.”
14. “If you don’t have a challenge, find one.”
15. If you want to win anything—a race, yourself, your life—you have to go a little berserk.”