I worked as hard as I could. I was always the first one on the ice, and the last one off.

I wouldn't say that there's ever been an Olympic champion that didn't deserve to win an Olympic Gold Medal.

I always had the sense that nothing was never good enough - striving for perfection. My mother and I had a sort of typical mother-daughter relationship.

It's different today than it was then. In those days we were strictly amateurs. If I had wanted to stay in for the '80 Olympics, my parents couldn't have afforded it.

Our family life, before figure skating turned it upside down, seemed normal. Our town of Riverside, Connecticut, was part of Greenwich, and we had the advantage of their wonderful community, with great beaches and beautiful parks.

I was just ice skating. I had no concept of that. In those days you couldn't see the judges. I was this little person on the ice and they were just people that would stand around the boards.

I was a bratty little sister. I was the youngest of three, and I often felt as though I didn't fit in.