MAX AARON

I hope to take my Birthright trip.

When I decided to continue in the sport, I decided I would do whatever it takes to be the best figure skater I can be.

Before I broke my back, I was really looking forward to playing hockey at the University of Michigan. That was my biggest goal.

At the end of the day, I could go back to getting sixth or seventh place and being a mediocre skater, or I could be a champion. I want to be a champion.

I want that three quad program! That's what's going to set me apart in the U.S.

I grew up looking to all those Jewish athletes for inspiration.

I can't say I have a lucky charm, but I do wear a 3/4-zip U.S.A. jacket I wear to every event. I got it from Nike, and it was from the 2012 Olympic Games.

I remember watching the 2002 Olympic Games and watching the men's event. I just started figure skating, and I remember thinking how cool it would be to be there.

No fear - that's my approach every single time I'm on the ice.

Anyone who's been the Olympic trials before is a veteran.

In hockey, sometimes a shift can go for a minute and a half, full out.

I was tired of getting last or fifth or sixth. I was tired of falling multiple times in a program. I was tired of competing differently than how I trained. If I was going to do that, why train so hard? I took a step back, and I figured out what I wanted to change about myself.

I definitely love getting a massage or going to a spa.

Nothing makes you try harder than to be told that you are not good enough or that you simply do not have the skills.

I feel connected to God when I'm out there performing.

Anything is possible. No one understands how far you can push your body to the limit, and I like to play with that.

It eventually ends, and that's what I think a lot of athletes forget. It's 10 years after the Olympics, and you won the Olympics, and that's great, but no one cares.

I'm not afraid of falling or failing, because I've failed many times, and I learned from them.

There were many times that I took such a big hit that I was dazed; I'm not going to lie. I'd see black, but I'm still looking for the puck. Where's the play going? I'm going to keep going. Same thing in figure skating. If I take a hard fall, I'm going to get up, and I'm going to do the next jump.

Some days you have it; some days you don't.

I have my struggles. But I'm doing whatever it takes to be an artist, to be the best technical jumper I can be, the best spinner I can be. Nothing is easy about that. But I'm doing whatever I can to be the best.

I'm looking towards that Olympic medal and that Olympic gold and what it's going to take to get there.

I push myself as hard as I can every day so I can achieve my goals and so I feel I have nothing to regret later on after my career.

I'm not going to let anyone tell me that I can't perform, that I'm not artistic.

I have always wanted to be the best, and it drives me every day, no matter the obstacle.