She [my mother] struggled, abusing alcohol for quite some time, and so we just kind of drifted apart. I went to college. But I dedicate the book to her because she is the true champion of the family. She kept our family together. She provided us with a roof over our head. She always worked.

My father showed me so much love. He showed my brother so much love. He just, he had a rough life. You know, he grew up in a boys home in the Bronx. He didn't really know his own family. So I couldn't hold it against him that he didn't know how to parent. He didn't know how to be the perfect husband. But he loved as much as he could.

I think at an early age I learned not to judge people.

It took putting one foot in front of the other every single day to get through it to the point where I made it back on the team and won a gold medal in 2008.

I'm just going to embrace every experience.

Nobody really knows who I am, where I came from, what's in my heart, why I believe in the things I believe, what I see behind the scenes and they don't see.

I never go on Facebook! I like, haven't confirmed anybody to be my friend on Facebook. I have lots of friends; I'm just really bad at Facebook.