A million words were going through my head and honestly I didn't say one of them. I wanted to let it sit, simmer, you know I wanted to soak it all in - the moment was amazing.
The London games mark the 24th anniversary of my winning two golds and setting the world record in the heptathlon. Someone is going to want it; records are made to be broken - it's only a matter of time. I hope mine will outlive me.
Lucky! I can only eat glitter and rainbows. Darn my sensitive stomach!
Don't let yesterday take up too much of today.
The paths people choose in life can lead to the creation or destruction of people, places, things, and relationships. The future is uncertain, but what is certain is there will be change.
As a player, you should look at the teams you might want to play for. The city you may want to live in. The system you may want to play in. The economy. The cost of living. Everything. It's about what's best for you.
Kids are great. That's one of the best things about our business, all the kids you get to meet. It's a shame they have to grow up to be regular people and come to the games and call you names.
On my best days, such as when I was a junior in high school coming off a 42-point performance and near triple-double, my dad was there to tell me I haven't arrived yet and bring me back to reality.
I have this burning desire to get out there and do my best. It's as if I'm keeping it all in a little bottle, and it's all going to come out when I do the best I'm capable of doing.
I try to focus on what I'm supposed to do, and to do my job the best I can. I kind of let everything happen the way it's supposed to happen, let everything fall into place the way it should.
I like something simple and traditional, like dinner and a movie. The best way to get to know someone is to have a conversation over dinner. And steak houses have a nice atmosphere - the lights are dim, and they usually have a band playing.
I think if you enjoy teaching, if you enjoy talking about your craft, that's probably the best way to do it... because once a player starts to get it, once he figures it out, he'll never forget it.
I enjoy watching competitive people. You watch 'em come and you watch 'em go, and how they try to be the best. How they handle when they're not. How they handle when they are. How they get along together on the court.
I don't blame David Stern because a player gets on the court and he doesn't put out competitively. No one can make you play if you don't want to play.
You don't cut anywhere, don't pick down anywhere, don't double screen, no weak side picking. All these things that should happen in a game of basketball don't happen anymore.
You look at today, it's a different situation. You have a game that has been transformed into a game where almost every shot is either an outside shot - a three-point shot - or a dunk.
You see what happens in college and high school games today - a three-point shot or a dunk. I think that's the reason that you see a lot of that in the pros today.
I'm not a person or a selfish player, but we have to move the ball more, and we have to look further the team game, because we have enough talent to use different players.
My philosophy is that you don't motivate players with speeches; you have motivated players that you draft. That's where they come in, and those are the guys that are competitive. You can not teach competitiveness.
My goals have gone from being an all-star to just being able to play basketball. I always took for granted that I could play. Now I know what a gift it is.
I was happy working for the N.B.A., but to be honest, I decided that I'd probably get back into coaching. I missed the teaching, I missed the games, I missed the competition.
