"He was not a runner, my father, but he was quick. I always remember it was very difficult to escape from him when he was angry. If he wanted to beat us he would always catch us. Even me, he could always catch me"
About this Quote
The sting in Haile Gebrselassie’s memory is how speed, in the wrong hands, stops being admirable and becomes inescapable. Coming from a man famous for turning quickness into grace and national pride, this recollection flips the usual sports mythology: velocity isn’t freedom here, it’s pursuit. The line lands because it’s built on a child’s logic - if you can run, you can get away - and then denies it. “He was not a runner... but he was quick” draws a clean line between talent and temperament. His father doesn’t need athletic identity to wield physical dominance; he just needs the will to do it.
The repetition (“always,” “always”) reads like a verdict delivered by someone who has replayed the same scene for decades. It’s not just about a single beating but a household rule: anger moves faster than you do. The detail “Even me” is the quietest flex and the most brutal. It acknowledges Gebrselassie’s extraordinary gift while admitting that, as a child, it meant nothing. Fame can’t outrun family.
Context matters: for many athletes from demanding, resource-scarce environments, hardship gets alchemized into inspirational narrative. Gebrselassie refuses the easy arc. He doesn’t romanticize discipline; he names fear. The intent feels less like accusation than clarity - a way of marking where his relationship to speed began, and how a body trained for triumph can also be shaped by the instinct to flee.
The repetition (“always,” “always”) reads like a verdict delivered by someone who has replayed the same scene for decades. It’s not just about a single beating but a household rule: anger moves faster than you do. The detail “Even me” is the quietest flex and the most brutal. It acknowledges Gebrselassie’s extraordinary gift while admitting that, as a child, it meant nothing. Fame can’t outrun family.
Context matters: for many athletes from demanding, resource-scarce environments, hardship gets alchemized into inspirational narrative. Gebrselassie refuses the easy arc. He doesn’t romanticize discipline; he names fear. The intent feels less like accusation than clarity - a way of marking where his relationship to speed began, and how a body trained for triumph can also be shaped by the instinct to flee.
Quote Details
| Topic | Father |
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