Jesse Jackson Quotes

Black people dominate sports in the United States. 20% of the population and 90% of the final four.

I mean, the greatest athletes in the world are African-American.

There's not that many African-American quarterbacks, so we have to do a little bit extra. Because the percentage of us playing this position, which people didn't want us to play... is low, so we do a little extra.

Is it my fault that there is a stereotype that black people are not good swimmers? I know that's a joke, but somebody will say, 'I can't believe you would say that.' Well, first of all it's just a joke, and second of all if you watch the Olympics, black people win medals in jumping, running. They don't win any in swimming.

And there is such a thing as a decathlon high. It's like a rock rolling down hill, picking up momentum. You get better and better.

There is no correlation between a childhood success and a professional athlete.

America has the best athletic programs. Even when the Soviet Union existed, that was Mickey Mouse compared to the U.S.

But it is a black man's game, and it will be forever.

I just felt all along that if I could get a certain amount of years in the league, have great years and still have my health when I walked away, that would be great.

If you can come to the Olympic Games and leave with a medal then that is alright.

The norm is white, apparently, in the view of people who see things in that way. For them, the only reason you would introduce a black character is to introduce this kind of abnormality. Usually, it's because you're telling a story about racism or at least about race.

In sports, people reach their peak very early. You have to move on. I don't know if I will ever surpass what I did at the Olympics, but I'm still doing the work I always wanted to do.

Nike doesn't want to make products for everyone - they want to make products for champions.

You know it's going to hell when the best rapper out there is white and the best golfer is black.

That doll looks more like a black man than me.

People were actually approaching me on the street and thinking that I was an athlete. They couldn't quite place it, but a runner, or swimmer or something.

People may remember something I did on the field for a couple of days, maybe a week.

I'm used to being the only black guy. I've seriously walked onstage, looked out in the audience, 15,000 people - and I'm the only one in the place. It's no big deal. My whole career's been like that.

The clock has been turned back on racial progress in America, though scarcely anyone seems to notice. All eyes are fixed on people like Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey who have defied the odds and achieved great power, wealth, and fame.

Black athletes are always under more scrutiny.

The self-image of many contemporary sportswriters seems to depend on maintaining that were it not for sports, athletes would be pumping gas, if they were not sticking up the gas station.

Nike was the essence of sports, transcendence through sports.

If it wasn't for finding out that my right leg could kick a ball really far, which is what I did, I am 100 percent certain that I would be attempting to be or would be a professional wrestler.

Oh, I never knew I was going to be a great player.

Fans and reporters, they don't get that ever since I was five, all I've done is competed against something. I always had a goal. Then, whenever you hit a point, there's a point in an athlete's life where it's like, 'Is it still worth it?'