Sports are the acme of hard effort and dedication for sports lovers. These most naturally talented athletes must give it their all to reach the summit of their sport.
We watch sports for the thrills, but we follow them much more for the drama. Nothing beats seeing a team come back from a 3-0 deficit to win the fourth game, or a boxer rise from the canvas to score a recovery after a knockout.
Sports are all about those wonderful moments when human willpower and passion triumph over adversity. These are the memories we have.
Given the nature of athletics, it’s not unexpected that sportsmen have had to inspire and motivate things to say about hard effort, dedication, leadership, winning, and more. The most inspiring sports quotations for athletes and supporters are listed below.
110+ Inspiring Sports Quotes to Enhance Your willpower
Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.― Babe Ruth
Winning isn’t everything–but wanting to win is.― Vince Lombardi
Only he who can see the invisible can do the impossible. ___ Frank L. Gaines
I always felt that my greatest asset was not my physical ability, it was my mental ability.___Bruce Jenner
A trophy carries dust. Memories last forever.___Mary Lou Retton
Number one is just to gain a passion for running. To love the morning, to love the trail, to love the pace on the track. And if some kid gets really good at it, that’s cool too.___Pat Tyson
The only way to prove that you’re a good sport is to lose.___Ernie Banks
When you’re riding, only the race in which you’re riding is important.___Bill Shoemaker
Age is no barrier. It’s a limitation you put on your mind.___Jackie Joyner-Kersee
The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.― Phil Jackson
The score never interested me, only the game.― Mae West
Most people give up just when they’re about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game one foot from a winning touchdown.___Ross Perot
You have to do something in your life that is honorable and not cowardly if you are to live in peace with yourself.___Larry Brown
There may be people that have more talent than you, but theres no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do.___ Derek Jeter
The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.― Phil Jackson
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
Somewhere behind the athlete you’ve become and the hours of practice and the coaches who have pushed you is a little girl who fell in love with the game and never looked back… play for her.___Mia Hamm
The problem with winter sports is that — follow me closely here — they generally take place in winter.― Dave Barry
Running isn’t a sport for pretty boys…It’s about the sweat in your hair and the blisters on your feet. Its the frozen spit on your chin and the nausea in your gut. It’s about throbbing calves and cramps at midnight that are 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
When you’ve got something to prove, there’s nothing greater than a challenge. ___ Terry Bradshaw
Never give up, never give in, and when the upper hand is ours, may we have the ability to handle the win with the dignity that we absorbed the loss.___Doug Williams
It’s not the will to win that matters—everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.___Paul “Bear” Bryant
It ain’t over ’til it’s over.― Yogi Berra
Persistence can change failure into extraordinary achievement.___Marv Levy
I’ve learned that something constructive comes from every defeat.____Tom Landry
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
Make sure your worst enemy doesn’t live between your own two ears.___Laird Hamilton
I’ve never lost a game. I just ran out of time.― Michael Jordan
Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there. ___ Bo Jackson
I became a good pitcher when I stopped trying to make them miss the ball and started trying to make them hit it.___Sandy Koufax
I feel the need to endanger myself every so often.― Tim Daly
If you can’t outplay them, outwork them.___Ben Hogan
One man practicing sportsmanship is far better than 50 preaching it.___Knute Rockne
The five S’s of sports training are: stamina, speed, strength, skill, and spirit; but the greatest of these is spirit.___Ken Doherty
An athlete cannot run with money in his pockets. He must run with hope in his heart and dreams in his head.___Emil Zatopek
Some seek the comfort of their therapist’s office, other head to the corner pub and dive into a pint, but I chose running as my therapy.― Dean Karnazes
If a man watches three football games in a row, he should be declared legally dead.― Erma Bombeck
Winning is a habit. Unfortunately so is losing.― Vince Lombardi
People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.___Rogers Hornsby
Adversity causes some men to break; others to break records. ― William Arthur Ward
Continuous effort — not strength or intelligence — is the key to unlocking our potential.___Liane Cardes
Good is not good when better is expected.___Vin Scully
The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person’s determination.___Tommy Lasorda
Champions keep playing until they get it right.____Billie Jean King
I went to a fight the other night, and a hockey game broke out.― Rodney Dangerfield
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
You were born to be a player. You were meant to be here. This moment is yours___Herb Brooks
Most people never run far enough on their first wind to find out they’ve got a second.___William James
Do you know what my favorite part of the game is? The opportunity to play.___Mike Singletary
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
If at first you don’t succeed, you are running about average. ___ M.H. Alderson
What you lack in talent can be made up with desire, hustle, and giving 110 percent all the time. __ Don Zimmer
If you fail to prepare, you’re prepared to fail.___Mark Spitz
How you respond to the challenge in the second half will determine what you become after the game, whether you are a winner or a loser.___Lou Holtz
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
Persistence can change failure into extraordinary achievement.___Matt Biondi
A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.― Wayne Gretzky
Sports serve society by providing vivid examples of excellence.____George F. Will
The principle is competing against yourself. It’s about self-improvement, about being better than you were the day before.___Steve Young
The more difficult the victory, the greater the happiness in winning.___Pele
It ain’t about how hard you can hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward.___Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa
Most talented players don’t always succeed. Some don’t even make the team. It’s more what’s inside.___Brett Favre
One man can be a crucial ingredient on a team, but one man cannot make a team.___Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
The road to Easy Street goes through the sewer. ____ John Madden
You are never really playing an opponent. You are playing yourself, your own highest standards, and when you reach your limits, that is real joy.___Arthur Ashe
What makes something special is not just what you have to gain, but what you feel there is to lose.___Andre Agassi
When you win, say nothing, when you lose, say less.____Paul Brown
The hardest skill to acquire in this sport is the one where you compete all out, give it all you have, and you are still getting beat no matter what you do. When you have the killer instinct to fight through that, it is very special.___Eddie Reese
The mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it, as long as you really believe 100 percent.___Arnold Schwarzenegger
When I go out there, I have no pity on my brother. I am out there to win. – Joe Frazier
During my 18 years I came to bat almost 10,000 times. I struck out about 1,700 times and walked maybe 1,800 times. You figure a ballplayer will average about 500 at bats a season. That means I played seven years without ever hitting the ball.___Mickey Mantle
I never left the field saying I could have done more to get ready and that gives me peace of mind.___Peyton Manning
Nobody who ever gave his best regretted it. – George Halas
Stubbornness usually is considered a negative; but I think that trait has been a positive for me.___Cal Ripken Jr.
You’ve got to take the initiative and play your game. In a decisive set, confidence is the difference.___Chris Evert
Leadership, like coaching, is fighting for the hearts and souls of men and getting them to believe in you.___Eddie Robinson
You win some, you lose some, and some get rained out, but you gotta suit up for them all.___J. Askenberg
Always make a total effort, even when the odds are against you.___Arnold Palmer
You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them. – Michael Jordan
To uncover your true potential you must first find your own limits and then you have to have the courage to blow past them.___Picabo Street
Show me a guy who’s afraid to look bad, and I’ll show you a guy you can beat every time.___Lou Brock
You can motivate by fear, and you can motivate by reward. But both those methods are only temporary. The only lasting thing is self motivation.___Homer Rice
You find that you have peace of mind and can enjoy yourself, get more sleep, and rest when you know that it was a one hundred percent effort that you gave–win or lose.___Gordie Howe
If you can believe it, the mind can achieve it.___Ronnie Lott
If you don’t have confidence, you’ll always find a way not to win.___Carl Lewis
Without self-discipline, success is impossible, period. – Lou Holtz
Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.___Michael Jordan
Make each day your masterpiece.____John Wooden
Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better.___Pat Riley
If you train hard, you’ll not only be hard, you’ll be hard to beat. – Herschel Walker
My motto was always to keep swinging. Whether I was in a slump or feeling badly or having trouble off the field, the only thing to do was keep swinging.___Hank Aaron
I didn’t believe in team motivation. I believe in getting a team prepared so it knows it will have the necessary confidence when it steps on the field and be prepared to play a good game.___Tom Landry
Your biggest opponent isn’t the other guy. It’s human nature.__Bobby Knight
Push yourself again and again. Don’t give an inch until the final buzzer sounds.___Larry Bird
If you aren’t going all the way, why go at all?___Joe Namath
You can’t put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.___Michael Phelps
Do not let what you can not do interfere with what you can do.___John Wooden
Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.– Lance Armstrong
Wisdom is always an overmatch for strength.___Phil Jackson
The will to win is important, but the will to prepare is vital.____Joe Paterno
Adversity cause some men to break; others to break records.___William A. Ward
Never let your head hang down. Never give up and sit down and grieve. Find another way.___Satchel Paige
Some people say I have attitude – maybe I do…but I think you have to. You have to believe in yourself when no one else does – that makes you a winner right there.___Venus Williams
Win If You Can, Lose If You Must, But NEVER QUIT!___Cameron Trammell
Do you know what my favorite part of the game is? The opportunity to play.___Mike Singletary
If you have everything under control, you’re not moving fast enough.___Mario Andretti
Just keep going. Everybody gets better if they keep at it. – Ted Williams
What do do with a mistake: recognize it, admit it, learn from it, forget it.___Dean Smith
It ain’t over till it’s over.___Yogi Berra
You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.___Wayne Gretzky
The highest compliment that you can pay me is to say that I work hard every day, that I never dog it.___Wayne Gretzky
Gold medals aren’t really made of gold. They’re made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.___Dan Gable
You’re only as strong as your weakest link.____Phil Jackson
You’re never a loser until you quit trying. – Mike Ditka
Never give up! Failure and rejection are only the first step to succeeding.___Jim Valvano
I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.___Michael Jordan
Never let the fear of striking out get in your way. – Babe Ruth
It is not the size of a man but the size of his heart that matters.___Evander Holyfield
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.’___Muhammad Ali
There are only two options regarding commitment. You’re either IN or you’re OUT. There is no such thing as life in-between.___Pat Riley
A champion is someone who gets up when he can’t.____Jack Dempsey