"I had not practised or used the starting block before. I was using it in Egypt for the first time. I did not know the blocks had sensors that could detect sensitive reactions, So, I triggered the block before the shot. I was disqualified for misusing it."

"Till today, the picture and video are still with the IOC and still at the museum. It shows the true picture of Olympics. We didn’t win the gold or the silver but bronze, however it was a golden bronze. To the IOC it depicts what the Olympics is all about."

"Wherever they are, despite the situation, they should not lose hope and must keep training."

"If I had got married to someone who was not sport-inclined, a typical African who would want you to have a regular job or stay at home as a mother; it would have been a disaster."

"Sport has always being seen as a man’s domain. It was a breakthrough period for women in sports and I am proud to say that I am one of the leading women that championed the breakthrough which led to the recognition of women in sport, both in Nigeria and Africa."

"Whenever I lose, I take it as a learning curve; I don’t beat myself over it."

"Hard work, discipline, determination and dedication. You have to learn what you do and do well in what you do."

"Talents are usually found in communities and schools. If kids are not identified early, it would be difficult to train them when they are older."

"There can only be one Michael Jordan, there can only be one Michael Jackson and there can only be one Mary Onyali."

"The table kind of turned on me, instead of me being managed when I was an athlete, now I have to manage people."

"There is no magic in sports, as much as we the athletes want to go there and win, but there is always somebody who is working harder than you are, and more is being invested in that person than in you."

"The separation of sports and education has made it difficult to discover other stars."

"When other nations are planning to win, we are praying. God hears our prayers but you have to help yourselves too."

"She (Blessing Okagbare) is good, she’s got good character and she’s doing fine. She’s hardworking; she sprints and jumps well. I also want to sprint like her."

"I feel like most of the time, really some of us don’t pay so much attention on ourselves and try to put other people or other things into it. At the end of the day, we lose focus on the things we’re supposed to focus on."

"Sports is big business. You have to invest. And you know we have great talents in Nigeria but you know, at the end of the day, all do not pay attention to these talents. They don’t prepare us for these major championships."

"You get to another stage of your life where you just don’t say things or do things like ‘I don’t know if I want to do this thing, I’m not sure’, no you have to want it, that’s just it."

"I could not maintain my rhythm but my aim was to finish the race, which fortunately, I did."

"This race, though not a full marathon, can only motivate me to work harder ahead of the forthcoming Olympics."

"Winning this race is good for me because it shows that I am in good shape. Training has been going pretty well, I have to maintain my shape by competing in such events."

"Sometimes, I’m forced to train in full body attire even though it is very uncomfortable because real athletic wear is frowned upon."

"Even though I left empty handed, I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything."

"When people close to me realised I had potential, they supported me both morally and financially and encouraged me to participate at the higher levels."

"I qualified because I was an outstanding candidate."

"Women should stop at nothing to fulfill their goals."

"Some people find pleasure in pulling other people down with negativity."

"Do not let anyone tell you that you can’t do something because you can do anything you put your mind to."

"There are some men who can’t approach a female athlete because of our masculine bodies. Why should that be a problem? We are no different from other women."

"Many people think athletes don’t get married and that if we do, we can’t have kids. That’s ridiculous!."

"Everyone has the potential to win but sometimes, other competitors soar higher and leave you wondering if you will ever get to their level, especially when you surpass your previous best times."

"I will never forget the first time I carried my country’s flag."

"I am proud of my performance at the Peace Marathon. It has shown me that I can be more productive in the Olympic Games if I improve my preparations."

"The silver medal for me was a sign that I would achieve a lot in athletics if I gave it time and work hard."

"My first performance in athletics made me realize how I had wasted time in football and handball."

"My focus now is to work hard in training so I can make my country proud in my first appearance in the Olympic Games."

"It is my first time competing in the Canadian marathon and I am so happy for this achievement."

"My focus now is to intensify training before taking part in the African Senior Championship next month and my dream is to qualify for the summer Olympic Games."

"It is a tough competition that requires extraordinary preparations but I believe I will have a better performance this time and set another personal best."

"I have a good chance. I'm in good shape and I'm feeling fine, but there are other strong athletes in the field and I will never stop fighting for it."

"I think I knew what discipline was as a child growing up at home. In Ethiopia there are things that you just have to accomplish. For example, I had always had to fetch water from the nearest river and wood from the forest, even though there were hyenas all around. That’s how you learn that sometimes you have to overcome things."

"Setting new national records was an indication that athletes were at their peak performance and that the upcoming national meets would be mouthwatering with the positive performance."

"To taste God’s air, the adrenaline rush on track, thousands of people all eyes on me, fans chanting a name not friendly to a foreign tongue, ‘It’s Amantle Moncho from Botswana!"

"Age has caught up, and only God knows how much my heart fills with excitement for every moment I represented Botswana and Africa at large"

"It was always exciting to represent my country on the international stage. Imagine the adrenaline rush when I step on the track knowing that all eyes are on me. That made it extra special. I had fans from all over the world but the support back home was the best"

"There is no Amantle Montsho without the people"

"Invest for the future and do not lose focus. In life you should know what you want then it will not be easy for someone to shift your focus."

"Refrain from things that will ruin your career."

"You must have goals and set targets to achieve them."

"Tabitha is turning 46 but you will amazed at how she is still doing it on the road. Remember this is the lady who ran 2 hours 29 minute in the 42km distance some time back and represented Zimbabwe at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. To me, Tabitha is the best ever"

"I am training plus you know am ageing, am getting old, so am doing something that I will fall on when I retire. And you know you don’t eat everything, even uprooting the tree, you have to eat the fruits, then leave the tree so that when you grow old, you will be just getting something from what you have been doing rather than just become redundant"