I Had Four Gold Medals, But You

I Wanted No Part Of Politics. And I Wasn't In Berlin To Compete Against Any One Athlete. The Purpose Of The Olympics, Anyway, Was To Do Your Best. As I'd Learned Long Ago From Charles Riley, The Only Victory That Counts Is The One Over Yourself.

Every Morning, Just Like In Alabama, I Got Up With The Sun, Ate My Breakfast Even Before My Mother And Sisters And Brothers, And Went To School, Winter, Spring, And Fall Alike To Run And Jump And Bend My Body This Way And That For Mr. Charles Riley.

Well, I Couldn't Play An Instrument. I'd Just Stand Up Front And Announce The Numbers. They Had Me Sing A Little, But That Was A Horrible Mistake. I Can't Carry A Tune In A Bucket. We Played Black Theaters And Nightclubs All Over Hell. One-nighters. Apollo Theater In Harlem And The Earle Theater In Philly - That Was Big Time For Blacks.

I Realized Now That Militancy In The Best Sense Of The Word Was The Only Answer Where The Black Man Was Concerned, That Any Black Man Who Wasn't A Militant In 1970 Was Either Blind Or A Coward.

Life Doesn't Give You All The Practice Races You Need.