Even at my age, I'm trying to improve. Never give up, no matter what. Even if you get last place - finish.

You have to reach deep within yourself to see if you are willing to make the sacrifices.

The race film had confirmed a dead heat. That was great. But even better, most of the New York press finally learned to spell my name correctly.

People say, on the raft, you must have hallucinated. Baloney. We were sharper after 47 days than the day we started because our minds were empty of all the war and contamination; we had clean minds to fill with good thoughts. Every day we'd exercise our minds.

I think the hardest thing in life is to forgive. Hate is self destructive. If you hate somebody, you're not hurting the person you hate, you're hurting yourself. It's a healing, actually, it's a real healing...forgiveness.

Pain is that last quarter of a mile. You feel it, but when you’re through racing, your whole body just feels elated. So the pain is worth it.

To live, a man needs food, water, and a sharp mind.