“I was more interested in skating and the girls and traveling than I was in calculus.”
“I started skating and I kind of liked it because I could run circles around the guys that wouldn't pick me to play baseball.”
“Rationality is not one of this industry's attributes.”
“Adversity, and perseverance and all these things can shape you. They can give you a value and a self-esteem that is priceless.”
“A bad attitude is the only true handicap.”
“I had a ninth grade teacher who told me I was much smarter and much better than I was allowing myself to be.”
“That's what makes the Ryder Cup in golf so much better than the Masters or the U.S. Open. To be a part of something that is not about personal achievement, but about representing everyone and sharing it with the whole country, it's wonderful.”
“Everything that I've ever been able to accomplish in skating and in life has come out of adversity and perseverance.”
“From the fall of October, 1980 to March, 1984 I never lost a competition.”
“I don't think most teachers realize how much impact they have.”
“The high road is always respected. Honesty and integrity are always rewarded.”
“So as an amateur Olympic competitor I loved criticism, because it made me better. But now as a professional I don't really know how to channel it or where to take it, so I don't take it quite as well.”
“Always try to maintain complete tolerance and always make an effort to give people more then they expect.”
“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.”
“Each movement is only learned after you've perfected the one before it.”
“I don't want to look back-I want to keep looking ahead. I'd hate for my defining moment to be my past.”
“When you turn professional, you become an entertainer, and like every other entertainer, you don't want to get a bad review.”
“I'm very accessible. I don't get into this ego thing.”
“Memories just get richer with time.”