Patience is a part of boxing. After I had missed out on the Olympic gold medal in 1984, a lot of people tried to talk me into turning professional quickly to make money. They told me that the next Olympics in Seoul would be boycotted again, that I was wasting my life, blah blah. But I still had unfinished business. I wanted the gold medal, and I got it in ‘88. Only then was I ready to turn professional.

Vitali [Klitschko] does want to fight me, but his promoter wants to be bigger than him. This is another situation of politics in the sport.

It's a very interesting fight [Klitchko vs Tyson Fury] because this is the first time [Wladimir] Klitschko is fighting someone as big as him and with longer arms. He will have to be a little bit more aggressive, otherwise the younger guy will have more speed and more energy and I think that may be the difference.

People want to see me back in the ring. I think it is more of a drag lying around on the beach.

When I was fighting Tyrell Biggs, Tyson was telling me at ringside to hit him to the ribs. We always had a mutual respect for each other since we sparred those early times. We got that over with.

During the past twenty-three years, I have set a number of goals for myself and I’m proud to say that these goals have been achieved.

Boxing and chess are similar. It’s about the choice of means. Sometimes I need a pawn, a bishop or a knight to defeat my opponent. It’s about finding the best way. A good boxer has to be variable. He doesn’t just need to know how to punch. He must also know how to protect himself, how to defend, how to avoid the opponent’s punches. Only a complete fighter can become champion.