Kezia Glory 
Sports Quotes – Sports, in the eyes of sports fans, are the embodiment of dedication and hard work.
Even the most naturally gifted athletes must put up their best effort in order to reach the summit of they’re respective sports.
Yes, we watch sports for the thrills and spills, but we watch them much more for the drama.
Seeing a team come back to win that fourth game after falling behind by three points, or a fighter coming off the canvas to score a comeback after being knocked out, is nothing short of thrilling to witness.
As a result, it is no surprise that athletes have had some inspiring and motivational things to say about a variety of topics such as hard effort, perseverance, leadership, winning, and a variety of other topics.
Sports quotes that are both inspirational for athletes and viewers are listed below.
Read also: 110 Questions to Ask a Girl and a Boy Before Dating
Motivational Sports Quotes For You
1. “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”― Babe Ruth
2. “The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”
― John Bingham, No Need for Speed: A Beginner’s Guide to the Joy of Running
3. “The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.”
― Phil Jackson
4. “The score never interested me, only the game.”― Mae West
5. “The problem with winter sports is that — follow me closely here — they generally take place in winter.”― Dave Barry
6. “Running isn’t a sport for pretty boys…It’s about the sweat in your hair and the blisters on your feet. It’s the frozen spit on your chin and nausea in your gut. It’s about throbbing calves and cramps at midnight that is strong enough to wake the dead. It’s about getting out the door and running when the rest of the world is only dreaming about having the passion that you need to live each and every day with. It’s about being on a lonely road and running like a champion even when there’s not a single soul in sight to cheer you on. Running is all about having the desire to train and persevere until every fiber in your legs, mind, and heart is turned to steel. And when you’ve finally forged hard enough, you will have become the best runner you can be. And that’s all that you can ask for.”― Paul Maurer, The Gift – A Runner’s Story
7. “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.”― Yogi Berra
8. “I’ve never lost a game I just ran out of time.”― Michael Jordan, For the Love of the Game
9. “I feel the need to endanger myself every so often.”― Tim Daly
10. “Many people say I’m the best women’s soccer player in the world. I don’t think so. And because of that, someday I just might be.”― Mia Hamm
11. “If you want to find the real competition, just look in the mirror. After a while you’ll see your rivals scrambling for second place.”― Criss Jami, Killosophy
12. “Have you noticed that whatever sport you’re trying to learn, some earnest person is always telling you to keep your knees bent? ”― Dave Barry
13. “Some seek the comfort of their therapist’s office, others head to the corner pub and dive into a pint, but I chose running as my therapy.”― Dean Karnazes, Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner
14. “Winning is a habit. Unfortunately so is losing.”― Vince Lombardi
15. “If a man watches three football games in a row, he should be declared legally dead.”
― Erma Bombeck
16. “I love the Olympics because they enable people from all over the world to come together and–regardless of their political or cultural differences–accuse each other of cheating.”
― Dave Barry, Boogers Are My Beat: More Lies, But Some Actual Journalism!
17. “Adversity causes some men to break; others to break records.”― William Arthur Ward
18. “When I was in high school I asked myself at one point: “Why do I care if my high school’s team wins the football game? I don’t know anybody on the team, they have nothing to do with me… why am I here and applaud? It does not make any sense.” But the point is, it does make sense: It’s a way of building up irrational attitudes of submission to authority and group cohesion behind leadership elements. In fact it’s training in irrational jingoism. That’s also a feature of competitive sports.”― Noam Chomsky
19. “Although golf was originally restricted to wealthy, overweight Protestants, today it’s open to anybody who owns hideous clothing.”― Dave Barry
20. “I went to a fight the other night, and a hockey game broke out.”― Rodney Dangerfield
21. “In the dust of defeat as well as the laurels of victory there is a glory to be found if one has done his best.”― Eric Liddell
22. “[On writing:] “There’s a great quote by Julius Irving that went, ‘Being a professional is doing the things you love to do, on the days you don’t feel like doing them.'”-David Halberstam
23. “Hockey is a sport for white men. Basketball is a sport for black men. Golf is a sport for white men dressed like black pimps.”― Tiger Woods
24. “A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.”― Wayne Gretzky
25. “Sports is to war as pornography is to sex.”― Jonathan Haidt
26. “Champions keep playing until they get it right.”― Billie Jean King
27. “With a hint of good judgment, to fear nothing, not failure or suffering or even death, indicates that you value life the most. You live to the extreme; you push limits; you spend your time building legacies. Those do not die.”― Criss Jami, Venus in Arms
28. “I later discovered that in order to be a good athlete one must care intensely what is happening with a ball, even if one doesn’t have possession of it. This was ultimately my failure: my inability to work up a passion for the location of balls.”
― Haven Kimmel, Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana
29. “Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game”
― Babe Ruth
30. “Our lives are mere flashes of light in an infinitely empty universe. In 12 years of education the most important lesson I have learned is that what we see as “normal” living is truly a travesty of our potential. In a society so governed by superficiality, appearances, and petty economics, dreams are more real than anything in the “real world”. Refuse normalcy. Beauty is everywhere, love is endless, and joy bleeds from our everyday existence. Embrace it. I love all of you, all my friends, family, and community. I am ceaselessly grateful from the bottom of my heart to everyone. The only thing I can ask of you is to stay free of materialism. Remember that every day contains a universe of potential; exhaust it. Live and love so immensely that when death comes there is nothing left for him to take. Wealth is love, music, sports, learning, family, and freedom. Above all, stay gold.”― Dominic Owen Mallary
31. “Ever bike? Now that’s something that makes life worth living!…Oh, to just grip your handlebars and lay down to it, and go ripping and tearing through streets and road, over railroad tracks and bridges, threading crowds, avoiding collisions, at twenty miles or more an hour, and wondering all the time when you’re going to smash up. Well, now, that’s something! And then go home again after three hours of it…and then to think that tomorrow I can do it all over again!”― Jack London
32. “Don’t let them drag you down by rumors just go with what you believe in.”― Michael Jordan, I Can’t Accept Not Trying: Michael Jordan on the Pursuit of Excellence
33. “Football is like life – it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.”― Vince Lombardi
34. “The thing about football – the important thing about football – is that it is not just about football.”
― Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals
35. “They say that nobody is perfect. Then they tell you practice makes perfect. I wish they’d make up their minds.”― Wilt Chamberlain
36. “It took me seventeen years to get three thousand hits in baseball. It took one afternoon on the golf course.”― Hank Aaron
37. “Everyone has the fire, but the champions know when to ignite the spark.”― Amit Ray, Enlightenment Step by Step
38. “Stay true to yourself and listen to your inner voice. It will lead you to your dream.”
― James Ross
39. “You don’t just want to beat a team. You want to leave a lasting impression in their minds so they never want to see your face again.”― Mia Hamm
40. “I think all of us are looking for that which does not admit of bullshit . . . If you tell me you can bench press 450, hell, we’ll load up the bar and put you under it. Either you can do it or you can’t do it—you can’t bullshit. Ultimately, sports are just about as close to what one would call the truth as it is possible to get in this world.”― Harry Crews, Getting Naked with Harry Crews: Interviews
41. “Academe, n.: An ancient school where morality and philosophy were taught. Academy, n.: A modern school where football is taught.”― Ambrose Bierce , The Unabridged Devil’s Dictionary
42. “You have to give 100 percent in the first half of the game. If that isn’t enough, in the second half, you have to give what’s left.”― Yogi Berra
43. “Outcasts may grow up to be novelists and filmmakers and computer tycoons, but they will never be the athletic ruling class.”― Chuck Klosterman, Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto
44. “It’s Thursday afternoon, and we have sports. These are the choices for the girls: watching an invitational cricket game; studying in one of the classrooms; or watching the senior rugby league. As you can imagine, I’m torn.”― Melina Marchetta, Saving Francesca
45. “Athletes are born winners, there not born loosers, and the sooner you understand this, the faster you can take on a winning attitude and become sucessful in life.”
― Charles R. Sledge Jr.
46. “Always keep an open mind and a compassionate heart.”― Phil Jackson
47. “Baseball players are smarter than football players. How often do you see a baseball team penalized for too many men on the field? ”― Jim Bouton
48. “Build up your weaknesses until they become your strong points.”― Knute Rockne
49. “Why is luge a sport? You dress up like a giant sperm and go sledding really fast. That’s hardly athletic. Phallic and sexy, yes. But hardly athletic.”― Jessica Park, Flat-Out Love
50. “I can’t believe it. I can’t believe it. Football. Bloody hell.”― Sir Alex Ferguson
51. “Guys care about sports teams. I’m not talking about simply rooting; I’m talking about a relationship that guys develop, a commitment to a sports team that guys take way more seriously than, for example, wedding vows.”― Dave Barry, Dave Barry’s Complete Guide to Guys
52. “I’m the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be.”― Bret Hart
53. “I read that Monica Seles got stabbed. And although I have nothing against Monica Seles, I’m glad somebody in sports got stabbed. I like the idea of it; it’s good entertainment. If we’re lucky, it’ll spread through sports. And show business, too! Wouldn’t you like to see a guy jump up on stage and stab some famous singer? Especially a real shitty pop singer? Maybe they’ll even start stabbing comedians. Fuck it, I’m ready! I never perform without my can of mace. I have a switchblade knife, too. I’ll cut your eye out and go right on telling jokes.”― George Carlin, Brain Droppings
54. “The strong one doesn’t win, the one that wins is strong.”― Franz beckenbauer
55. “(Baseball) is a game with a lot of waiting in it; it is a game with the increasingly heightened anticipation of increasingly limited action”― John Irving, A Prayer for Owen Meany
56. “Don’t look back. Something might be gaining on you.”― Satchel Paige
57. “All hockey players are bilingual. They know English and profanity.”― Gordie Howe
59. “Sports fans eat shit.”― George Carlin, Brain Droppings
60. “When we plant a rose seed in the earth, we notice that it is small, but we do not criticize it as “rootless and stemless.” We treat it as a seed, giving it the water and nourishment required of a seed. When it first shoots up out of the earth, we don’t condemn it as immature and underdeveloped; nor do we criticize the buds for not being open when they appear. We stand in wonder at the process taking place and give the plant the care it needs at each stage of its development. The rose is a rose from the time it is a seed to the time it dies. Within it, at all times, it contains its whole potential. It seems to be constantly in the process of change; yet at each state, at each moment, it is perfectly all right as it is.”
― W. Timothy Gallwey, The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance
61. “God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure. ”― Eric Liddell
62. “Love is a violent recreational sport. Proceed at your own risk. Helmets, armor, and steel-toe boots are required by law.”― H.C. Paye
63. “Everything you need is already inside.”― William J. Bowerman
64. “Revolution is a spectators sport. The majority will sit in the stands and watch the factions fight. At the end they will choose side with the team that is winning. ”― George Lincoln Rockwell
65. “Gold medals aren’t really made of gold. They’re made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.”― Dan Gable
66. “There are no environments where you’re only going to win because life just isn’t like that.”― Bobby Orr
67. “Books are, let’s face it, better than everything else. If we played Cultural Fantasy Boxing League, and made books go fifteen rounds in the ring against the best that any other art form had to offer, then books would win pretty much every time.”― Nick Hornby, The Polysyllabic Spree
68. “Why do you like show jumping?”
“… Beauty and excitement. The elements of trust, talent, training, love, and danger make show jumping a thrilling and aesthetic experience. It’s really the ultimate test of two nervous systems–the kinetic transfer of the rider’s muscle to the horse’s muscle enables them to clear those jumps. And there’s nothing like it–horse and rider forming an arc of beauty, efficiency, and power, like a double helix.”
“DNA,”
“Yes, DNA, the code to life.”― Ainslie Sheridan
69. “if you gone come in second, you’re just the first loser!”― Tiger Woods
70. “I realize im black, but id like to be viewed as a person, and that is everybody’s wish.”
― Michael Jordan
71. “My swag was phenomenal.”― Gilbert Arenas
72. “Soccer forces life to move on. There’s always a new match. A new season. There’s always a dream that everything can get better. It’s a game of wonders.”
― Fredrik Backman, Britt-Marie var här
73. “Do you know what my favorite part of the game is? The opportunity to play. ”
― Mike Singletary
74. “If a team intimidates you physically and you let them, they’ve won.”
― Mia Hamm
75. “An atheist is a man who watches a Notre Dame – Southern Methodist University game and doesn’t care who wins.”― Dwight D. Eisenhower
76. “A lifetime of training for just ten seconds. ”― Jesse Owens
77. “When the seagulls follow the trawler, it is because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea. ”― Eric Cantona
78. “As athletes, we’re used to reacting quickly. Here, it’s ‘come, stop, come, stop.’ There’s a lot of downtimes. That’s the toughest part of the day. ”― Michael Jordan
79. “Approach the game with no preset agendas and you’ll probably come away surprised at your overall efforts. ”― Phil Jackson
80. “Football is an incredible game. Sometimes it’s so incredible, it’s unbelievable. ”― Tom Landry
81. “a lot of football success is in the mind. you must believe you are the best and then make sure that you are.”― bill Shankly
82. “I have no sense of humor about losing”― Rafael Nadal, Rafa
83. “Swimming is simply moving meditation.”― Cesar Nikko Caharian
84. “Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer. ”― Ted Williams
85. “wouldn’t you like to make sure all those millions you give to Uncle Sam went to schools and hospitals instead of nuclear warheads?’ As a matter of fact, he would. Playgrounds for big kids, preschool programs to little ones, and mandatory LASIK surgery for NFL refs.”― Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Natural Born Charmer
86.“Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules, and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence. In other words, it is war minus the shooting. (in “The Sporting Spirit”, Tribune, GB, London, December 1945)”
― George Orwell, The Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters of George Orwell 1903-1950
86. “Baseball happens to be a game of cumulative tension but football, basketball, and hockey are played with hand grenades and machine guns. ”― John Leonard
87. “Sports bras are also a great place for guys to meet other guys–either for sex or for wrestling, whichever feels more right. ”― Eugene Mirman, The Will to Whatevs: A Guide to Modern Life
88. “You can perhaps, in a number of circumstances, tell yourself that you can’t have more than you have until you do better than you’re doing, but by all means steer clear of its reverse, the creed of defeat, in saying that you can’t do better than you’re doing until you can have more than you have.”― Criss Jami, Healology
89. “Age is no barrier. It’s a limitation you put on your mind.’’-Jackie Joyner-Kersee
90. “Sports do not build character. They reveal it.’’-Heywood Broun
91. “Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.’’-Henry David Thoreau
92. “Just be patient. Let the game come to you. Don’t rush. Be quick, but don’t hurry.’’-Earl Monroe
93. “Only he who can see the invisible can do the impossible.” – Frank L. Gaines.
94. “The man who has no imagination has no wings.” – Muhammad Ali
95. “Today, you have 100% of your life left.” – Tom Landry
96. “A trophy carries dust. Memories last forever.” – Mary Lou Retton
97. “The only way to prove that you’re a good sport is to lose.” – Ernie Banks
98. “I always felt that my greatest asset was not my physical ability, it was my mental ability.” – Bruce Jenner
99. “It is not the size of a man but the size of his heart that matters.” –Evander Holyfield
100. “Champions keep playing until they get it right.” – Billie Jean King
101. “There may be people that have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do.” – Derek Jeter
102. “One man practicing sportsmanship is far better than 50 preaching it.” – Knute Rockne
Read also: 100 Cute Love Poems For Her and Him
I hope you find these 100 inspiring quotations for athletes to be beneficial.
It would be great to hear any statements that you think are particularly inspiring or motivating to play sports if we have missed anything.