CONCENTRATION, INNER CALM, RESPECT FOR ADVERSARIES ARE CHARACTERISTICS 'I TRY TO SUMMON UP IN MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS OF MY JOB', SECRETARY-GENERAL STATES

12 February 1999

Press Release
SG/SM/6894

CONCENTRATION, INNER CALM, RESPECT FOR ADVERSARIES ARE CHARACTERISTICS 'I TRY TO SUMMON UP IN MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS OF MY JOB', SECRETARY-GENERAL STATES

19990212 'All Three Are Essential in Going the Distance and in Staying On Track', Kofi Annan States upon Receiving Jesse Owens Global Award

Following is the address by Secretary-General Kofi Annan upon receiving the Jesse Owens Global Award, in New York yesterday:

I am deeply honoured by this award. "Running", Jesse Owens once said, "was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting in the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs."

Jesse Owens' words bring back to me my own modest background in sports. I recall fondly my years with the track teams of Macalester College and the University of Science and Technology at Kumasi in my native Ghana.

I recall the friendships, the team spirit and the sheer joy of participation. It is therefore with particular pride that I join you in honouring Jesse Owens tonight.

To live is to choose. And if life is choices, then Jesse Owens' life is an extraordinary example of what it is all about.

Jesse's childhood was marred by chest disease, but he chose to run. Jesse's after-school job prevented him practising with the track team, but he chose to train with Coach Riley in the mornings before school. Jesse's Olympics were confronted by Hitler's massive propaganda campaign, but he went on to win four gold medals, to beat several world records and, in his own way, to defeat Nazism.

Coach Riley had told Jesse to concentrate on three things: dedication, determination and discipline. His mentorship was to inspire one of Jesse's most memorable sayings later on -- that there is no such thing as an average kid, and that every kid is worth investing in.

- 2 - Press Release SG/SM/6894 12 February 1999

You could say that the luckiest people in the world are those who have had a Coach Riley in their life. If that is so, I have been very lucky indeed -- for I have had several.

It may be a truism to say that sports build bridges of understanding among peoples, but it is no less true for that. And so whatever the actions of Adolf Hitler in the Berlin stadium that day, the German people liked and admired Jesse Owens -- for they knew character and courage when they saw it.

If the 100-metre dash is 10 seconds that last a lifetime, it is also 10 seconds that take a good part of a lifetime to prepare for.

If there are any characteristics I try to summon up in the most important moments of my job, it is those of concentration, inner calm and respect for my adversaries. For most of us, all three are essential in going the distance and in staying on track.

And so, as one of those inspired by Jesse's example on and off the track, I am moved more than I can say by the honour you have bestowed on me tonight. To sportsmen, sportswomen and sports lovers everywhere -- thank you, and keep on running.

* *** *