“My parents always encouraged me and I had a good home life. We were always taught to respect things and other people. It’s so different today, because children are just not taught the right way.”

I can understand how evolution says, “don’t believe in God”, but I’ve never had this problem.

I don’t concentrate on things I can’t do. I do what I can do.

You’ve got to stick at a thing, a particular thing, until you succeed.

I always felt free when I ran. I suppose that’s what was good about it.

No way did I ever think I was going to win the 100m.

I realized from a very early age that God gave me a gift, and that gift was to run, and I wanted to use it to the best of my ability.

I feel that’s the only way to succeed – by concentrating on something in particular. Once you know what you’ve got to do you will succeed, you will succeed.

My salvation was a free gift. I didn’t have to work for it and it’s better than any gold medal that I’ve ever won.

Everything I did that required effort, I opened my mouth. Even to catch a ball, I opened my mouth.