The Athens Olympics will be meaningful even though I cannot participate as an athlete, since I can participate in the flame relay all over the world.

Money makes life easier but I don't want to be rich, not at all.

I have a friend who, if she has a bad hair day, it affects her whole mood because it is part of her sexuality, her confidence. I don't have that problem any more.

I'm certainly not ready to go changing the world overnight right now. I'm completely uninformed about a lot of our issues, a lot of the nation's issues, not just Indigenous issues.

The last sort of really low-key race I ran, I realized with about a hundred metres to go, that my heart just wasn't in it. I wasn't trying my hardest, I didn't care to compete against the girls I was up against. That spoke a lot about where my heart was taking me-which was off the track.

I have been told many times that when I win I make my people proud to be Australian. I am Aboriginal, I am one of them and every time I win or am honoured like this it should be an example to Aboriginal people who may think they have nowhere to go but down. But more importantly I am an Australian and I would like to make all Australians feel proud to be Australian. Ours is a truly multicultural society and should be united as such. I would like to believe that my successes are celebrated by all Australians, bringing our nation together.

I'm doing something now where I'm going to have to learn so much and that takes time nurturing, those kinds of relationships.