Lolo Jones

I didn't have a big-time contract out of college like most athletes. In fact I had no contract at all.

Maybe there's a little girl who thinks she can be an Olympic athlete, and she sees all the things I struggled through to get here. Yeah, I didn't walk away with a medal or run away with a medal, but I think there's lessons to be learned when you win and lessons to be learned when you lose.

Sometimes bad things are going to happen in your life, and those things can make you stronger if you just learn how to get over them.

Running was like the friend that never left. It was just always there.

I am training at such a high level that I actually could eat anything and get by. But as my coach always says, your body is like a car, and food is like your fuel. I am a race car, so I can't just put unleaded fuel in my car. I need that good premium fuel.

I listen to a lot of Christian music, and reading my Bible calms me down immensely.

When I'm standing in a stadium packed with 80,000 screaming fans, I can't just whip out my Bible before I run. That's when I start praying! It's so loud that I can't even hear what I'm saying, but it always helps.

There's definitely a whole double standard. I don't understand it. A guy can be sexy and good-looking, and it totally just enhances his credibility as an athlete.

If a female is good-looking, it totally decreases her credibility. Now she's not a good athlete - she's only good in these track meets because she's good-looking.

The Olympics are only once every four years, so you have to take advantage of all your opportunities, both to be an inspiration to people and help support your sponsors who help you.

I definitely would say, by sixth grade, I was a professional shoplifter - and not because I wanted to. I'm not going out to shoplift earrings or clothes or shoes like the average teenager. I was shoplifting frozen dinners at a grocery store.