My doctor told me I would never walk again. My mother told me I would. I believed my mother.

Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose.

My doctor told me I would never walk again. My mother told me I would. I believed my mother.

I loved the feeling of freedom in running, the fresh air, the feeling that the only person I'm competing with is me.

When I was going through my transition of being famous, I tried to ask God, why was I here? What was my purpose? Surely, it wasn't just to win three gold medals. There has to be more to this life than that.

I don't consciously try to be a role model, so I don't know if I am or not. That's for other people to decide.

What do you do after you are world-famous and nineteen or twenty and you have sat with prime ministers, kings and queens, the Pope? Do you go back home and take a job? What do you do to keep your sanity? You come back to the real world.