“I always say my biggest competitor is myself because, whenever I step out there on the mat, I’m competing against myself to prove that I can do this and that I am very well trained, prepared for it.”

My parents make sure we have everything we need so that we compete to the best of our abilities.

For me, I don’t think about size – I focus more on being powerful and confident.

As athletes, we’re always going to have aches and pains, but when your teammates cheer you on, you don’t think about it.

I never thought about competing in the Olympic Games when I was growing up.

The support down here in Rio has been amazing – between my family, Team U.S.A. and Team Kellogg’s, I’ve felt so much love. This whole experience has been a dream come true.

I think for me, the most fun competition that I’ve had was my first Worlds.

At some point, I’ll have to go get a real job.

I love a good Netflix binge!

Sometimes I hear the crowd cheering, and most of the time your body’s on auto pilot, so sometimes even after I do a floor routine, I’m like, ‘Did I really just do that?’

We’ve always had each other’s backs in and out of competition. We support each other the most because we’re the only ones that know what it’s like to go through what we do, and so we can’t be more thankful for each other. We’re like sisters.

I just keep surprising myself, I guess.

I have everything I need, so there are no blanks left unfilled.

Most of our fans don’t get to interact with us or know our personalities except through social media.

I was missing out on public school and going to the football games, prom or homecomings. But I’ve been to three World Championships. So I think it’s like a win-win.

When we had free time in the Olympic Village, we got massages and rested while watching Netflix.

It was a very long and hard decision. My dad kept telling me, ‘You can always go to college, but you can’t always go pro.’ That made sense to me.

If one intends to make beer from oats, it is prepared with hops.

Most have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win.

Dare to declare who you are. It is not far from the shores of silence to the boundaries of speech. The path is not long, but the way is deep. You must not only walk there, you must be prepared to leap.

Don’t prepare. Begin. Our enemy is not lack of preparation. The enemy is resistance, our chattering brain producing excuses. Start before you are ready.

Research can become Resistance. We want to work, not prepare to work.

Note that this journey is uniquely yours, no one else’s. So the path has to be your own. You cannot imitate somebody else’s journey and still be true to yourself. Are you prepared to honor your uniqueness in this way?

You must always be prepared to place a bet on yourself, on your future, by heading in a direction that others seem to fear.

Be brief, for no talk can please when too long. Being prepared is half the victory.