You cannot do sports without sacrifices - Gebrselassie

Internationally celebrated athlete, Haile Gebrselassie, has advised sportsmen and women to learn to sacrifice if they want to be successful in what they do.

He said all the great athletes learned this in the course of their career.

“I was ready to sacrifice in competition and training”, he said and if anyone wants to rise to a significant position in any sporting field, he should follow same.

He said the world is quick to witness his winning and not his training saying "10 of the winning is in my effort and 90 in my training."

Speaking to Joy FM's Super Morning Show host, Kojo Yankson, the celebrated athlete of the International Association of Athletics Federations, said he did not allow limitations of his environment to influence what he had to become.

How he began:
“I started athletics at the age of 4”, he said, and this was the result of the circumstances he found himself.

Gebrselassie said his passion began when he had to run 10km to school, and back in Arsella, Arsi Province, in Ethiopia.

"This means 20km every day", he said.

He is a holder of 61 national records, and broke 27 world records.

Gebrselassie said natural talent is dictated by the way one grows up, and he admires Ghanaians for their performance on the football field.

In his response to the recent drug allegations which have bedeviled the Athletic Federation, Gebrselassie said “there are many allegations on-going in the sport”, and he hopes things would be set to rest.

"I feel so sad and asking what I have to do to help", he remarked saying "I have teach the young ones' how to go about the sport".

He expressed confidence in the new president of the Athletic Federation to help resolve recent issues in the sport.

Millennium Marathon:
Gebrselassie is in Ghana as a global sports icon for the official launch of the Millennium Marathon Africa on the Run which is taking place in Accra on February 22 at the Movenpick Hotel.

The main event for the Millennium Marathon would take place Saturday September 3, 2016.

It would be preceeded by a 10 regional marathon starting from Tamale.

Early Life and Records:
Haile Gebrselassie was born on April 18, 1973 in Arsella, Arsi Province in a farm house. He was one of ten children of his parents. He run 10km to school every day, and later had to translate this into a career.

Gebrselassie said his first race was in school when he joined a 1, 500m race. Though he happened to be the youngest, he stuck to his start up and won the race.

He is a celebrated Olympic and world champion, winning two Olympic gold medals at 10,000 metres, and four world championships at the same distance.

Gebrselassie has won major titles at all distances from 1500 metres to the marathon, and the 61 times national record holder.