I was scared to death, but I made fear score points for me. Fear is right behind me, fear is six inches off my back, that's where fear is. I can feel its presence. But it's not going to catch me... I'm going to take fear and use it to my advantage.

If you're going to dedicate every second to winning the decathlon, what are you doing wasting your time in bed?

Waving the flag at the 1976 Olympics wasn't my idea. It was too much apple pie and ice cream. Not that I don't love my country, but I felt it was my victory up there, I put all the time into it.

The truth is everybody does it from time to time. People dial telephone numbers and they get a wrong number only to find that they've read the last two digits backwards. Everybody does it, but dyslexics have this tendency to a higher degree.

I'm saying goodbye to people's perception of me and who I am, I'm not saying goodbye to me, because this has always been me.

If you're asking your kids to exercise, then you better do it, too. Practice what you preach.

I still have nightmares about taking tests.