Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is all too happy to reveal what drives him to get up at 5.30am every day on his way to clocking up 160 miles in training a week.
The answer lies within the heart of every runner, fast or slow.
"It is all about the people. If I didn't race I would miss the supporters and the other runners, my friends," says the Ethiopian icon.
"When you're tired and you hear someone from the crowd saying: 'You can do it', that just spurs you on.
"I love it, it is motivation. It is the cheers that I'd miss.
"I want to keep running for as long as possible, I want to keep training, I want to get out there and sweat.
"I need all of that and the competitions because they give you a focus. Having an event to do pushes you on, whatever level you are at.
"You do the mileage, do the strength training and then the speed work."
The 37-year-old has won everything in athletics from Olympic gold on the track to being the current world marathon record holder in 2hrs 03mins 59secs, set in Berlin in September 2008.
And he fits it all in around a nine-to-five desk job running his thriving business empire in Ethiopia, employing 600 workers.
The world's greatest ever distance runner was in Newcastle yesterday to sign up for the 30th Bupa Great North Run along with 54,000 competitors on September 19.
With 'Haile 1' on his vest, Gebrselassie will complete the last remaining gap on his roll of honour in the Newcastle to South Shields classic, which is backed by the Daily Mirror. He is also "dreaming" he can have a crack at the halfmarathon world record of 58mins 23secs set by Zersenay Tadese of Eritrea in Lisbon in March.
That's a challenging 32 seconds faster than his personal best - but winning the Great North Run is Gebrselassie's priority. To put those times into context, miles churned out at 4min 30 pace, try sprinting up the street flat out... and carry on for another 13 miles. And still lose.
Gebrselassie is still driven to succeed on and off the roads. His legendary status has brought riches that have helped him build a five-star resort in Ethiopia, invest all his cash back home and help inspire a country once infamous in the West for famine, on the slow road to economic stability.
His schedule will not be matched by any of the fun runners taking to the start line in September. But he modestly explained his regime: "The morning training is always the most important.
"Normally, I am training for about three hours, and when it's two months before a competition, I will be doing about 35k in that morning slot.
"In the early evening, I spend most of my time in the gym doing strength work.
"But even if I am in the gym, I will still do 10k on the treadmill and another 10k on the bike.
Haile Gebrselassie reveals what gets him up running at 5.30am every day
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/more-sport/athletics/2010/07/14/haile-storm-115875-22411607/
July 14, 2010
Simon Bird
ATHLETICS: ETHIOPIAN PREPARES TO CHALLENGE ANOTHER WORLD MARK
(Pic: Getty)
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is all too happy to reveal what drives him to get up at 5.30am every day on his way to clocking up 160 miles in training a week.
The answer lies within the heart of every runner, fast or slow.
"It is all about the people. If I didn't race I would miss the supporters and the other runners, my friends," says the Ethiopian icon.
"When you're tired and you hear someone from the crowd saying: 'You can do it', that just spurs you on.
"I love it, it is motivation. It is the cheers that I'd miss.
"I want to keep running for as long as possible, I want to keep training, I want to get out there and sweat.
"I need all of that and the competitions because they give you a focus. Having an event to do pushes you on, whatever level you are at.
"You do the mileage, do the strength training and then the speed work."
The 37-year-old has won everything in athletics from Olympic gold on the track to being the current world marathon record holder in 2hrs 03mins 59secs, set in Berlin in September 2008.
And he fits it all in around a nine-to-five desk job running his thriving business empire in Ethiopia, employing 600 workers.
The world's greatest ever distance runner was in Newcastle yesterday to sign up for the 30th Bupa Great North Run along with 54,000 competitors on September 19.
With 'Haile 1' on his vest, Gebrselassie will complete the last remaining gap on his roll of honour in the Newcastle to South Shields classic, which is backed by the Daily Mirror. He is also "dreaming" he can have a crack at the halfmarathon world record of 58mins 23secs set by Zersenay Tadese of Eritrea in Lisbon in March.
That's a challenging 32 seconds faster than his personal best - but winning the Great North Run is Gebrselassie's priority. To put those times into context, miles churned out at 4min 30 pace, try sprinting up the street flat out... and carry on for another 13 miles. And still lose.
Gebrselassie is still driven to succeed on and off the roads. His legendary status has brought riches that have helped him build a five-star resort in Ethiopia, invest all his cash back home and help inspire a country once infamous in the West for famine, on the slow road to economic stability.
His schedule will not be matched by any of the fun runners taking to the start line in September. But he modestly explained his regime: "The morning training is always the most important.
"Normally, I am training for about three hours, and when it's two months before a competition, I will be doing about 35k in that morning slot.
"In the early evening, I spend most of my time in the gym doing strength work.
"But even if I am in the gym, I will still do 10k on the treadmill and another 10k on the bike.
Haile Gebrselassie
Haile Gebrselassie is all too happy to reveal what drives him to get up at 5.30am every day on his way to clocking up 160 miles in training a week.
The answer lies within the heart of every runner, fast or slow.
"It is all about the people. If I didn't race I would miss the supporters and the other runners, my friends," says the Ethiopian icon.
"When you're tired and you hear someone from the crowd saying: 'You can do it', that just spurs you on.
"I love it, it is motivation. It is the cheers that I'd miss.
"I want to keep running for as long as possible, I want to keep training, I want to get out there and sweat.
"I need all of that and the competitions because they give you a focus. Having an event to do pushes you on, whatever level you are at.
"You do the mileage, do the strength training and then the speed work."
The 37-year-old has won everything in athletics from Olympic gold on the track to being the current world marathon record holder in 2hrs 03mins 59secs, set in Berlin in September 2008.
And he fits it all in around a nine-to-five desk job running his thriving business empire in Ethiopia, employing 600 workers.
The world's greatest ever distance runner was in Newcastle yesterday to sign up for the 30th Bupa Great North Run along with 54,000 competitors on September 19.
With 'Haile 1' on his vest, Gebrselassie will complete the last remaining gap on his roll of honour in the Newcastle to South Shields classic, which is backed by the Daily Mirror. He is also "dreaming" he can have a crack at the halfmarathon world record of 58mins 23secs set by Zersenay Tadese of Eritrea in Lisbon in March.
That's a challenging 32 seconds faster than his personal best - but winning the Great North Run is Gebrselassie's priority. To put those times into context, miles churned out at 4min 30 pace, try sprinting up the street flat out... and carry on for another 13 miles. And still lose.
Gebrselassie is still driven to succeed on and off the roads. His legendary status has brought riches that have helped him build a five-star resort in Ethiopia, invest all his cash back home and help inspire a country once infamous in the West for famine, on the slow road to economic stability.
His schedule will not be matched by any of the fun runners taking to the start line in September. But he modestly explained his regime: "The morning training is always the most important.
"Normally, I am training for about three hours, and when it's two months before a competition, I will be doing about 35k in that morning slot.
"In the early evening, I spend most of my time in the gym doing strength work.
"But even if I am in the gym, I will still do 10k on the treadmill and another 10k on the bike.