Olympic Gold Medalists

"それがあるから絶対幸せが来るんだっていうのをひたすら待ってました。「明けない夜はない」。"

"My strength is, I’m able to really analyze myself and have that image and try to match that with the physical skating."

"Honestly, sometimes I’m feeling like they treat me as a celebrity or an idol, but I’m not quite that. But I understand they’re all here to support me and I appreciate that passion."

"I am an athlete, and as an athlete it’s normal to keep challenging to do more and more."

"自分の中で特にこれになりたいというのはないけど、アニメとかは好きだし、なんかとにかく劇的に勝ちたいという気持ちはすごくあります。"

"It’s thanks to Javi, if I beat my pressure. When I feel nervous, he’s usually talking about something funny. So I think, I owe what I won to him."

"自分がすべきことを集中してやっていけば、自ずと道は開かれてくると信じているので。"

"プレッシャー大好き、崖っぷち大好き、ヤッホーイ。"

"努力はウソをつく。でも無駄にはならない。"

"毎回毎回、被災地とか、津波の被害があったところとか、通るたびにすごく思うんだけれども、僕の言葉なんかじゃ絶対表せないし…言ってみれば部外者だから、僕たちは。人の心に踏み込んじゃいけないところって絶対あるんで…。でもこういう風景を見てる時に思うのは、本当に何ができるかなってことはいつも思います。[...] 本当に僕たちは今生きている中で逆に何を残せるんだろうってすごく思うんですよね、本当にいろんなものがなくなってしまったからこそ。”"

"明日の自分が今の自分を見たら胸張っていられるように、そんな今を過ごし続けたいなという風に思ってます。"

"次のもう一個の課題を克服するチャンスが来たっていうのは、それはもうただただ、いつも思うように、こんな恵まれたことはないですよ。"

"逆境は嫌いじゃないので。弱くなってる自分がすごく嫌なんです。それは本当に嫌いですけど、でも弱いというのは強くなれる可能性があると思ってるんで。"

"I try to find challenges after every competition and overcome them the next time."

"えっと、まあ、チャレンジャーっていうことを言われますけど、でもいつも他のスケーターの良いところを追いかけてるし、他のスケーターに対してチャレンジしたいなって思ってるし、だからいつも自分はチャレンジャーだと思っていて、だから今シーズンの世界選手権でも先シーズンの世界選手権でも何も変わらないかなって思います。"

"いろんな方々が僕の演技を見た時に勇気を感じたとか、何か幸せになったとか、そういったことを言ってくれて、それが自分にとってのスケートのモチベーションだと思ってますし、それが僕が今スケートを最後までやり通す意味になってるなって思います。"

"He's a lucky charm for me, but kinda like a coach, because he always watches my performance and he's always with me for every competition. I'm really glad to see his face."

"I bet my life to skate, everytime. I think, that's the mission of my life. That's why I was born here. [...] I was born for my skate."

"フィギュアスケートは、1人で大きなリンクで滑ることが出来て、皆さんがそれを見てくださるので、それがすごく特別だなって思いますし、他の競技だったら1人だけを見てくれるということがあんまりないかなって思いますし、後は何か表現したいことを表現するっていうことが出来ないかなって思うんですよね。だからフィギュアスケートはすごく特別だなって思うし、フィギュアスケートがすごく好きだなって思います。"

"I really love to skate, I really love to perform. I want to skate for my fans. I never feel like a champion. I'm always a challenger."

"目標を書くなら大きいほうがいい。具体的に書いたほうが達成しやすい。けっこう理数系です。"

"いつも心を開いているんです。心を開いていなければ何も吸収できないし、おもしろくない。心を開くことが成長の原動力。"

"試合でうまくいかなくてもあまり落ち込まないのが僕の特徴です。逆に失敗した試合のあとは100%モチベーションが上がります。"

"震災後初めて、津波の被害のあったところまで行き、石巻の中学校を訪問させていただきました。全校生徒の前でスケートの話をしたんですけれど、それより金メダルを持ってきているということにまず、中学生たちがすごく喜んでくれたんです。そして、僕に会っただけでもすごく笑顔になってくれました。生徒の皆さんの笑顔から、被災した方々、本当につらい経験をしてきた方が元気になってくれたということを、教えてもらったというか、肌で感じさせていただいたことが初めてだったので、すごく嬉しかったんです。僕自身が一番感動し、僕自身が元気になったなって思います。"

"実際こうやって金メダリストになりましたが、僕一人が頑張ったからといって復興に直接つながるわけではないので、すごい無力感というか、そういうのを感じますし、何もできていないんだなと思います。一生懸命やって五輪で金メダルを取れたのはありますけど、やはりここからまた五輪の金メダリストになれたからこそ、スタートなんじゃないかなと思います。ここから復興のためにできることがあるんじゃないかなと、今思っています。"

"自分は被災者なのかスケーターなのか、ということにすごく迷っていた時期もあったんですけど、どっちでもないのかなという気がしました。明確な答えはまだ出てないですけど、スケーターとして本当にいろんな方に支えられてるなと感じています。"

"震災があってからちょっと変わったかなって思います。やっぱり自分は周囲を支えようとする立場だと思われるんですよ、メディア的な部分でも。自分の演技を通じて応援できれば、という感じに。でも逆に僕がすごく支えられていたなって感じたんです。"

"「あって当然のもの」なんてないんだな、ということを、よく考えます。今、自分がここにいること。自分の家が、まだ無事に建っていること。そばに家族がいてくれること。どれをとっても当たり前のことなんかじゃない。本当に偶然、幸運に恵まれて存在しているものだということ。一度はいろいろなものを失いかけたことで、改めてそう考えるようになりました。まだ17歳のちっぽけな僕ですが、価値観を大きく変えられてしまう……東日本大震災は、そんな出来事でした。"

"今はとにかく、一日一日を大事にしたいと思う。何気ない日常の一日一日、アイスショーの日々、練習の日々、試合の日々をすべて大切にしたい。そんなことを、あの日を境により強く感じるようになりました。"

"これから試合が始まったら、羽生は地震のせいで成績が落ちた、なんてことにはしたくない。もちろん自分が被災者の代表であることの誇りは絶対に失いはしないけれど、「地震のなかで頑張った」「地震のせいで頑張れなかった」ではなく、普通の選手として、何も関係なく戦えるだけの力をつけたいんです。"

"If Horton and Guy can swim a little faster, they can taste my delicious footbath water."

"You’re a loser, I’m a winner."

"I just won't share a podium with someone that behaves in the way that he has."

"It feels like all my hard work has paid off and being able to back up with two big competitions this year has given me more confidence for the future and I'm really excited to see how far I can go."

"This is my charge to everyone: We have to be better, we have to love more and hate less. It is our responsibility to make this world a better place."

"霍頓（Mack Horton）、蓋伊（James Guy），你們游得再快一點，就能喝到我美味的洗腳水了。"

"1500 metre, I am the king."

"When I was about eight or nine, I knew I liked boys. But I soon came to the understanding that gay was not as good as straight. That it would be better to be straight and that people didn't like gays because they can't marry and had to be secretive. Nobody told me directly, but these were messages I got from society."

"You find that in countries where gay marriage is legalised, there's a lot less homophobic violence. It's because it's normalised. Once it's legalised it does become a lot less of an issue. And it really is such a normal thing; look at how fucking many of us there are! Society is always going to be heteronormative, there's nothing we can do about that. But if society stops demonising homosexuality and condemning it, then kids will stop absorbing messages which say who they are is wrong."

"Sport, in general, tends to be a good decade behind the rest of society in terms of talking about these issues. There's been a lot of progress. There's women's equality in sport, talking about depression in sport, homophobia in sport, and drugs in sport. I actually think when gay marriage is legalised, and it becomes such a non-issue in wider society, it will likewise become a non-issue in sport."

"I went vegetarian after watching Earthlings. I had no idea how intense and how horrible factory farms are. I have such a love for animals that I can’t justify having their heads cut off for me. And the slavery of the dairy industry motivates me to go more vegan. I can’t justify animal slavery for my enjoyment. … I feel stronger than I’ve ever been, mentally, physically, and emotionally. My plant-based diet has opened up more doors to being an athlete. It’s a whole other level that I’m elevating to. I stopped eating animals about a year ago, and it’s a new life. I feel like a new person, a new athlete."

"I was bypassed in 1932 possibly because of my academic handicaps and so called social position in life. I was still an ordinary soldier holding a minor rank."

"My experience thus far had been to win matches and not lose them. I remember that in 1932, after our return from the Olympic tour, we beat Delhi by 12 goals to nil. I never recognised Delhi as a big hockey playing center, but on this day they were right on top of us and completely outplayed us. The news of this defeat created adverse opinions about us, and while touring other centers before we finally sailed from Mumbai. This particular defeat kept worrying me. For the first time I was captaining the Olympic team; will India lose the title under my charge?"

"Nowadays I hear of the princely comforts provided for national teams traveling overseas, and fuss players raise if they happen to miss even a cup of tea! When we used to travel the name of our country and the game were the only two things that mattered."

"It was a great day for me when my Commanding Officer called me and said ‘Boy, you are to go to New Zealand’ I was dumbfounded, and did not know what to reply. All I did was to click my heels snappily and, give as smart salute as I possibly could, and beat a hasty retreat. Once out of sight of the officer, I ran like a hare to reach my barracks and communicated the good news to my fellow soldiers. And what a reception they gave me! I lost no time in getting prepared for the trip. I was not a rich man, my earnings as a sepoy being only a few rupees a month. My parents were not rich either....I clothed myself as inexpensively as possible, and my personal outfit was my military kit... As soldiers belonging to the Other Ranks (read lower ranks), it was a great experience for us. Prior to this tour we could never conceive of being feted and entertained at private houses and public functions in such a glorious and enjoyable manner. We were made heroes, and on my part, if I may put it quite modestly, I proved myself a great success and left behind a great impression."

"The cottage had twenty beds, a telephone and a refrigerator. Everything was kept spick and span, and every minute details of our comforts had been attended to. Two stewards were there to look after us. One was Otto, an old seasoned-sailor who had visited India several times and spoke English well. The other was named Schimdt, and he spoke English haltingly."

"In 1933, the Jhansi Heroes decided to participate in the Beighton Cup hockey tournament. My life’s ambition was to win the Beighton Cup, as I had always regarded this competition as the blue riband of Indian hockey. In my opinion it is perhaps the best organized hokey event in the country. Calcutta is indeed lucky that it has at least three of four first class hockey grounds on the maidan, and this is a great advantage to run a tournament on schedule instituted since 1895, this tournament had a non-stop run. World War|World Wars I and II did not affect the tournament. Threats of Japanese bombs and actual bombings in Calcutta while the hockey season was on also did not prevent from the tournament from being held. That being said, it is sad to think that the tournament had to yield to the communal frenzy, which gripped the nation in 1946-47."

"According to widespread reports, German dictator Adolf Hitler offered Dhyan Chand German citizenship and a position in the German Military, after an impressive showing at the Berlin Olympics. The offer was declined by the Indian magician."

"The Olympic complex now has a magic show too."

"It looks like he has some invisible magnet stuck to his hockey stick so that the ball does not leave it at all.'"