“Growing up in high school, I wasn’t hanging out with friends every day or on the weekends. Doing normal high school kid things was something I was willing to give up.”

For the millionth time, I’m retired. I keep saying it, and people keep answering, ‘Well, maybe he doesn’t mean it this time.’ But I do.

I wouldn’t say anything is impossible. I think that everything is possible as long as you put your mind to it and put the work and time into it.

I want to retire how I want to retire – and I have a great opportunity to do that.

I listen to music before my competitions to get me pumped up. It helps me stay focused.

Every day after I wake up, I think, ‘Wait, this can’t be real; I’m still going to wake up.’

For so long, I looked at myself as literally a kid who was talented who would go up and down the pool. That’s it. Nothing else. Very few people knew who I really was.

I learned how fast you can go from being an international hero to being a reference in a joke on a late night talk show.

I think to be – for me to be an American is – you know, it’s one of the greatest things in the world for – you know, for me just because I’ve been able to grow up with everything. The freedom. You know, in my eyes this is the greatest country in the world.

I live a pretty conservative life, so I probably really haven’t done anything crazy.

People say to me, ‘You’re so lucky. You get to see the world.’ But I don’t. I go to the hotel and to the pools and back again. That’s it.

It’s cool just because I’ve had this dream of changing the sport of swimming and it’s finally happening.

I have the opportunity to be part of swimming history. To take the sport to a new level would be an honor for me. There’s no better time to try this than now.

I got the stamina. I can close.

My goal is one Olympic gold medal. Not many people in this world can say, ‘I’m an Olympic gold medalist.’

Every sponsor I’ve had has been something that fit my lifestyle, fit my personality.

I want to test my maximum and see how much I can do. And I want to change the world of swimming.

It’s all God’s will: you can die in your sleep, and God can spare you in battle.

People do not lack strength, they lack will.

Just because someone isn’t willing or able to love us, it doesn’t mean that we are unlovable.

We can judge our progress by the courage of our questions and the depth of our answers, our willingness to embrace what is true rather than what feels good.

Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.

Champions have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.

Have courage and a little willingness to venture and be defeated.

Willingness to explore everything is a sign of strength. The weak ones have prejudices. Prejudices are a protection.