Alan Oliveira Quotes

Fantastic, I am very happy to be the fastest 800 metres runner in the world.

Prior to the 1976 Olympics, I was a 5,000m runner.

Hurdling, sprinting, athletics in general, is always in the back of your mind.

This is what I wanted. They tell me that London is the best field in history. I wanted to be part of that. Because everyone will be there it will be a wonderful challenge for me. You can see the best runners, how they look, how they run. For me to beat the best is what counts.

I've had some experience in track and field in school, but I did have to train to be able to play Jesse Owens - to be a runner, to be an Olympian.

To this day, most people think of me as the fastest human. They don't really think me as a long jumper, although that's the event I had more success in.

My coach told me if I broke the national record for the 200, I could run a 100.

Nike came to me and said, 'We're interested in the decathlon and interested in seeing if we can help you get as close to 10,000 points as we can.'

I have been dreaming of an outdoor world record forever. Now I want them all: the 1500, the 5000, even the 800.

I wouldn't know who Michael Johnson was if he didn't run fast times.

I don't know much about the history of track and field, but I know Gail Devers.

The 200 m. is the event I want to get better at.

When I chose athletics, I knew I wanted to be Olympic champion, and now I have done it in London.

I had a great season and truly enjoyed competing around the world - from Monaco, where I managed to establish a world record, to Beijing, where I finally captured my first world outdoor title.

I want to be looked at as one of the greatest sprinters of all-time.

We can't all win Olympic medals. Even I never won one.

In high school, the fastest I ever ran was like a 4.67; that's pretty fast. But then, I only weighed 168 pounds.

To be with the other two-time gold medalists is great, but it's great to just be a decathlete.

I think I was in the most historical and golden era of track and field.

In the television era, the second week of the Olympics is reserved for what is considered the marquee event: track and field.

I don't think I was a perfect hurdler, but I guess I did win all the time.

If anybody wants to beat me, let them run a world record.

I'm very happy to have set a world record in Tallinn. Estonians sure do love athletics and combined events!

What does it prove, running in the AAU meet?

I felt I was never going to beat Igor Ter-Ovanesyan or Ralph Boston because they were the joint world record holders.