A collection of thoughts and quotes by Dan Gable on motivational, record, wrestling, shoes, pride, sports, determination, skill, mind, accomplish, freedom and strength.
58 Inspiring Quotes By Dan Gable That Will Teach You The Gamesmanship
Dan Gable is a distinguished retired American Olympic wrestler and head coach recognized as one of the greatest amateur wrestlers that the country ever had. He is famed for his tenure as the head coach at the University of Iowa. He won fifteen NCAA titles during 1976 and 1997. Gable also gained fame for having lost only a single match in his entire Iowa State University collegiate career. In 1972, Gable also bagged in a gold medal in the Olympic Games held at Munich, Germany where he did not lose a single point. In Iowa, 25th October 2013 was recognized as ‘Dan Gable Day’. He has also authored a book titled ‘Coaching Wrestling Successful’ in which he shared his coaching techniques for developing wrestling champions. Gable has shared his thoughts, opinions and views on subjects close to his heart through his work, writings and life. Following is a compilation of quotes and sayings by Dan Gable which he shared both within and outside the ring.
More enduringly than any other sport, wrestling teaches self-control and pride. Some have wrestled without great skill - none have wrestled without pride.
Dan Gable
There's always ways of motivating yourself to higher levels. Write about it, dream about it. But after that, turn it into action. Don't just dream.
The 1st period is won by the best technician. The 2nd period is won by the kid in the best shape. The 3rd period is won by the kid with the biggest heart.
When I'd get tired and want to stop, I'd wonder what my next opponent was doing. I'd wonder if he was still working out. I'd tried to visualize him. When I could see him working, I'd start pushing myself. When I could see him in the shower, I'd push myself harder.
My wrestling and family go together. It's always been that way, from day one with my mom and dad, my sister, my wife, four daughters, grandsons, son-in-laws.
Many of those who have paid the ultimate price for freedom have come through the wrestling ranks. We need to honor them and win this decision to have wrestling - the world's oldest sport - remain a part of the most prestigious athletic competition in the world, the Olympics.
Raising your level of performance requires a proper mentality and meaning from within. This gives you the ability and drive to work on the things necessary to go to a higher level. When people ask me how to raise their level of performance, the first thing I ask is, How important is it to you?
I vowed I wouldn't ever let anyone destroy me again. I was going to work at it every day, so hard that I would be the toughest guy in the world. By the end of practice, I wanted to be physically tired, to know that I'd been through a workout. If I wasn't tired, I must have cheated somehow, so I stayed a little longer.
There is no mat space for malcontents or dissenters.
Dan Gable
The bells are a very good investment. They never break if they are maintained. I can teach the kids the basics. They may play bells for only one year, but many of them go on to play at local churches.
All I worried about was what Owings was doing to me, instead of what I was doing to him. When you start worrying about that stuff, you're going down the wrong path.
There is no mat space for malcontents or dissenters. One must neither celebrate insanely when he wins, nor sulk when he loses. He accepts victory professionally, humbly; he hates defeat, but makes no poor display of it.
Dan Gable
Talent is everywhere, winning attitude is not.
Dan Gable
Determination is the strength needed to succeed.
Dan Gable
I’m a big believer in starting with high standards and raising them. We make progress only when we push ourselves to the highest level. If we don’t progress, we backslide into bad habits, laziness and poor attitude.
Dan Gable
Pain is nothing compared to what it feels like to quit. Give everything you got today for tomorrow may never come.
Wrestlers are a little more dedicated than, and are different from, the other people, which may be strange.
Dan Gable
A clean, hard-fought wrestling match is the most honest of athletic contests. There is no technological interventions, no teammates to blame, no panel of judges to bias the score. In wrestling, you compete or you quit. No alibis. I like that
When I lifted weights, I didn't lift just to maintain my muscle tone. I lifted to increase what I already had, to push to a new limit. Every time I worked, I was getting a little better. I kept moving that limit back and back. Every time I walked out of the gym, I was a little better than when I walked in.
If you want to train and work hard 3 months out of the year, well, then, UNI is a great place to go. If you want to bust your tail 6 months out of the year, you should be very happy at ISU. But if you want to train and develop into a champion 12 months out of the year, then Iowa is the place for you.
You can't ever work too much because there's no such thing as being in too good condition. You can't ever lift too many weights because you can't ever get too strong. You can't ever wrestle too much because you can always do better.
The obvious goals were there- State Champion, NCAA Champion, Olympic Champion. To get there I had to set an everyday goal which was to push myself to exhaustion or, in other words, to work so hard in practice that someone would have to carry me off the mat.
Wrestling is the only sport I've ever competed in that puts you totally in a situation of constant motion without breaks. I could play football or baseball, swim -- but there's always some kind of situation that would break my thoughts, break my concentration.
Wrestling has been a way of life with me day in and day out. I won't get too far away from it. I might walk through the wrestling room once a week. I could go every day if I wanted. But just walk through, make sure it's still there.
