“I may not be walking with you all the way, or even much of the way, as I walk with you now.”

The best way to judge a life is to ask yourself, “Did I make the best use of the time I had?

A wise person decides slowly but abides by these decisions.

Drummed into me, above all, by my dad, by the whole family, was that without your good name, you would be nothing.

One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.

Someone once told me that God figured that I was a pretty good juggler. I could keep a lot of balls in the air at one time. So He said, “Let’s see if he can juggle another one.”

If you’re paid before you walk on the court, what’s the point in playing as if your life depended on it?

Throughout my formal education I spent many, many hours in public and school libraries. Libraries became courts of last resort, as it were. The current definitive answer to almost any question can be found within the four walls of most libraries.

There is a terrific apprehension among some people that blacks will take over the sport… It will create problems because their behavior, speech and dress is just a completely different culture.

We must reach out our hand in friendship and dignity both to those who would befriend us and those who would be our enemy.

It is not just the more talented player who wins. Some players may try a little harder.

I have become convinced that we blacks spend too much time on the playing field and too little time in libraries.

Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome.

Later, I discovered there was a lot of work to being good in tennis.

I have become convinced that we blacks spend too much time on the playing field and too little time in libraries.

I don’t want to be remembered for my tennis accomplishments.

You learn about equality in history and civics, but you find out life is not really like that.

Sport has the power to change the World.

Failure is not an option. Everyone has to succeed.

Defeat is not defeat unless accepted as a reality-in your own mind.

Life is the most brutal endurance sport of all time.

No leader, however great, can long continue unless he wins battles. The battle decides all.

I’ve never known a man worth his salt who, in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn’t appreciate the grind, the discipline.

Fitness has always been one of the top priorities in my life because that’s the way I grew up, with soccer being the sport of choice.

I am very proud of everyone who showed Japan’s ability to the world’s strongest players at the World Cup held here in Japan for the first time in Asia.