A Pic and A Quote #40: GREATNESS

“Greatness colors outside the lines not because it cannot see the lines, but because it ignores the lines.” – Jeff Johnson

WHO:  Future G.O.A.T.s – Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia, #82) & Hicham El Guerrouj (Morocco, #204)

WHAT:  IAAF World Cross Country Championship, Men’s Junior Race

WHEN: 1992

WHERE:  Franklin Park, Boston

STATS

Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia)

• 10 Olympic Games and World Championship gold medals

• set previous world records

5000m = 12:39.36 (final 1600m of 3:59.36)

10000m = 27:22.75

20000m = 56:25.9

half marathon = 58:55

marathon = 2:04.26

Hicham El Guerrouj (Morocco)

• 9 Olympic Games and World Championship gold medals

• holds current world records (after more than 20 years)

1500m = 3:26.00 (1998)

1 mile = 3:43.13 (1999)

2000m = 4:44.79 (1999)

• retired after winning the 1500m and 5000m Olympic titles in 2004 (Athens)

Editor’s Note: Due to the graciousness of Jeff Johnson, John Goegel and others, we are carrying over a series begun during the track season on our sister site, newhampshiretrackandfield.com .  For those of you that don’t know, Jeff Johnson was employee #1 of Nike.  He actually is the one responsible for naming the company.  Fortunately for us, he was also a world class photographer of our great sports in the 1960s and 1970s during which he captured thousands of sports photographs.  We are honored and thankful for their choice to use our sites as their medium for sharing their passion.  We hope our presentations can do them justice!

Photo by Jeff Johnson

Quotes by Jeff Johnson from his work in progress: “In Other Words: Things I Think I Said When I Was Trying To Think Of Something To Say.”

If you are interested in a poster version of a photo from this series, they are available for a small charge.  Contact us via nhcrosscountry@gmail.com