Athlete Struggles Quotes

It's just like I'm an athlete, I'm a human being. I have personal issues going on.

I think it would be tough for a lot of the athletes that I play with to think that while that I'm showering, that I'm performing on the field, I'm bleeding, I'm fighting with a person that is a homosexual.

Coping with injuries is always difficult for athletes because all we want to do is, basically, to have our best performances unhindered.

I was at the Olympic Games winning medals and I still doubted my image. I doubted what I looked like. That's sad.

It's a hard game, boxing. You're up every morning running every day, you train in the afternoon, you're dieting, you're up and down in weight and it can wear you down.

To the fans, thank you for your patience and concern. They've been on point with my career, especially after my injuries.

My idea behind the film was to show the struggles an athlete continually endures. There is always a story behind a successful sportsperson. In 'Soorma,' we have tried to recreate that.

You're always going to have a Dez Bryant somewhere in the league, somebody who has to go through some off-the-field problems in order to reach his potential.

I want the younger kids, the basketball players in high school and college to hear from me and let them know that when you come to the league, this is what happens and this is how I feel as an NBA player. And it's not all peachy keen.

You come from the college, you're the man. I was second-team All-American. I got drafted by Toronto, but they just took me because I was the best man on the board. They didn't need me. I didn't get a whole lot of help or guidance. I wasn't playing. I couldn't get reps in practice. And it's big-boy basketball. Grown men.

Of course, I believe injury has stopped me winning more tournaments.

I went through a phase after we won the World Cup of 'what am I going to do with my life.'

It's true: a lot of sportspeople really struggle to find something to do when they finish. It tips them into all sorts of strange things. With ex-footballers, it's really scary. I think 70% of them get divorced within five years. It's hard. You go from being really famous to not that famous. Your salary drops through the floor.

It's tough to be a 15- or 16-year-old athlete competing around the country. There's tension, there's media. I had no idea what I was getting into.

I don't think I have whatever that thing is that makes some athletes bad with money.

And in nineteen seventy two I almost wasn't, on the team, but I knew about it just before Olympic Games for three months before this why this is was not very good for me. I'd been ready to go, you know.

Most people when they see me cry for a shot, say, 'Wow, what a natural!' But I actually do cry and break down.

That's the worst part about all of the injuries and the criticism. It would be one thing if I had been healthy for five years and just sucked when I was on the court. But I can't prove what I can do because I can't stay healthy. Not having control over the situation makes it tough.

Yeah, I blew up. But people don't see the other side of it. They don't talk about how I played on a broken foot. They don't know about the everyday grind.

I'm feeling better after the game than I did when I came off the floor with cramps. ... I was going to try to give it a go, and 'Spo said 'No.' You know, after I came out of the game, they kind of took off. And it was frustrating sitting out and not being able to help the team.

Before the last Olympics, we had meat raffles at the local surf club to get petrol money to go to training, to help out with the bills. But I know there are a lot of athletes worse off and that all athletes, at some stage of their careers, have made sacrifices.

Sometimes people fight with injuries and nobody knows, so it's important for the fans to see what we do to - for everything.

I was a borderline guy in the NFL.

Fans - they want to see results. I've been a fan before. I get it. But I see the bigger picture, too. I would never say an athlete sucks after they've been good, because you don't know what they're going through. They might be going through something that they can't shake.

I had pain in both knees my whole career. Not many athletes play pain-free. Mine was just more than normal.