50+ Unforgettable Sports Quotes for Hustle, Grit and Glory

Looking for the kind of motivation that pushes athletes to go the extra mile? Sports quotes have a powerful way of capturing the mindset behind dedication, teamwork, and winning. 

From iconic lines by legendary coaches to uplifting sayings that fuel personal bests, these quotes inspire far beyond the field.

So then what makes sports quotes so impactful? It's the way they blend passion, resilience and purpose into just a few words reminding us all to dig deeper, stay focused, and never give up. 

This collection brings together the most motivational and famous sports quotes to energize your next game, goal, or challenge.

• "It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get up." – Vince Lombardi
  
  

• "Champions aren't made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them—a desire, a dream, a vision." – Muhammad Ali
  
  

• "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." – Wayne Gretzky
  
  

• "Hard days are the best because that's when champions are made." – Gabby Douglas
  
  

• "If it doesn't challenge you, it won't change you." – Fred DeVito
  
  

• "You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them." – Michael Jordan
  
  

• "The only way to prove that you’re a good sport is to lose." – Ernie Banks
  
  

• "A champion is someone who gets up when he can't." – Jack Dempsey
  
  

• "Never say never because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion." – Michael Jordan
  
  

• "The more difficult the victory, the greater the happiness in winning." – Pelé
  
  

• "It's not the will to win that matters—everyone has that. It's the will to prepare to win that matters." – Paul "Bear" Bryant
  
  

• "Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do." – John Wooden
  
  

• "You are the only one who can limit your greatness." – Unknown
  
  

• "The only one who can tell you 'you can't win' is you and you don't have to listen." – Jessica Ennis-Hill
  
  

• "Today I will do what others won't, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can't." – Jerry Rice

• "I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed." – Michael Jordan 
  
  

• "If you see me in a fight with a bear, pray for the bear." – Kobe Bryant 
  
  

• "To be the best, you have to work the hardest. You have to chase what seems impossible over and over and over again." – LeBron James 
  
  

• "Poise and confidence are not possible unless you have prepared correctly. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail." – John Wooden 
  
  

• "If you don't fall, how are you going to know what getting up is like?" – Stephen Curry
  
  

• "The only person who can really motivate you is you." – Shaquille O'Neal
  
  

• "Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best." – Tim Duncan
  
  

• "You don't have to be Magic to be special. You're already special, you're you." – Magic Johnson
  
  

• "Confidence is everything in this game. If you don't think you can, you won't." – Jerry West
  
  

• "Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard." – Kevin Durant
  
  

• "Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen." – Michael Jordan
  
  

• "Success is not an accident, success is actually a choice." – Stephen Curry 
  
  

• "You have to go through good times and bad times to get where you're trying to go." – Allen Iverson
  
  

• "Excellence is a habit. You are what you repeatedly do." – Shaquille O'Neal
  
  

• "No one is bigger than the team. If you can't do things our way, you're not getting time here, and we don't care who you are." – Gregg Popovich

• Muhammad Ali (Boxing)
  "It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe."
  
  

• Lindsey Vonn (Alpine Skiing)
  "If you go around being afraid, you're never going to enjoy life. You have only one chance, so you've got to have fun."
  
  

• Carl Lewis (Track and Field)
  "I always felt that my greatest asset was not my physical ability, it was my mental ability."
  
  

• Babe Ruth (Baseball)
  "You just can't beat the person who never gives up."
  
  

• Billie Jean King (Tennis)
  "Champions keep playing until they get it right."
  
  

• Mary Lou Retton (Gymnastics)
  "A trophy carries dust. Memories last forever."
  
  

• Paul "Bear" Bryant (Football Coach)
  "It's not the will to win that matters—everyone has that. It's the will to prepare to win that matters."
  
  

• Alex Karras (Football)
  "Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles."
  
  

• Gail Devers (Track and Field)
  "Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication."
  
  

• Eric Cantona (Soccer)
  "Preparation is everything and focus is the key."
  
  

• Ronda Rousey (Mixed Martial Arts)
  "You have to have fear in order to have courage."
  
  

• Steve Prefontaine (Track and Field)
  "Most people run a race to see who is fastest. I run a race to see who has the most guts."
  
  

• Laird Hamilton (Surfing)
  "Make sure your worst enemy doesn't live between your own two ears."
  
  

• Jackie Joyner-Kersee (Track and Field)
  "Age is no barrier. It's a limitation you put on your mind."

• "Baseball is 90% mental and the other half is physical." – Yogi Berra 
  
  

• "It's a beautiful day for a ballgame... Let's play two!" – Ernie Banks 
  
  

• "You can observe a lot by watching." – Yogi Berra
  
  

• "Every strike brings me closer to the next home run." – Babe Ruth 
  
  

• "The way a team plays as a whole determines its success." – Babe Ruth 
  
  

• "If you're not practicing, somebody else is, somewhere, and he'll be ready to take your job." – Brooks Robinson 
  
  

• "To succeed in baseball, as in life, you must make adjustments." – Ken Griffey Jr. 
  
  

• "A winner is somebody who goes out there every day and exhausts himself trying to get something accomplished." – Joe Torre
  
  

• "You may not think you're going to make it. You may want to quit. But if you keep your eye on the ball, you can accomplish anything." – Hank Aaron
  
  

• "I want people to expect more from me because I expect more. If you don't set goals high, you're not trying." – Todd Helton
  
  

• "Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too." – Yogi Berra
  
  

• "Baseball is like a poker game. Nobody wants to quit when he's losing; nobody wants you to quit when you're ahead." – Jackie Robinson 
  
  

• "If my uniform doesn't get dirty, I haven't done anything in the baseball game." – Rickey Henderson