Nadia Comaneci

Of course I used to smile and laugh in 1976, but not when I was competing. Please show me somebody who laughs when they are concentrating; I always smiled.

I believe that you should gravitate to people who are doing productive and positive things with their lives.

You can't jump from little things to big things. It just takes time and patience.

Enjoy the journey and try to get better every day. And don't lose the passion and the love for what you do.

Scoring the first 10 in history was a big deal, but the fact that even an electronic scoreboard could not figure out how to put out a score, it made the story more historic.

I don't run away from a challenge because I am afraid. Instead, I run toward it because the only way to escape fear is to trample it beneath your feet.

When I look back, I am happy that my mum took me to the gymnastics club. I didn't join gymnastics to become a famous athlete or celebrity; it just happened - I did more than I expected, of course.