"It was my first time to see the game but I integrated very quickly that each player was passing me the ball to make a goal and I liked it mainly because I found people that share the same life challenges like mine."

"I have three people in my life I feel grateful to, they include my mum, who has been so supportive all my life, my husband Karasira, we met in NPC and we loved each other and later got married and lastly Dominic Bizimana, who encouraged me since the day I met him at NPC until today."

"My target is going to Tokyo in 2020 again; Rio is like a stepping stone to give us the experience and then the real appetite to start working for Tokyo 2020."

"Like I mentioned earlier, to qualify for Rio Paralympics Games ranks up there as my best moment in my career so far and the worst moment was the period when I first started to play sitting volleyball."

"At first I believed that I would recover fully and but as much as my family tried all possible means to have my leg reconstructed, nothing changed, so I had to accept my new way of life"

"My parents had sent me to buy milk from Ndoli Supermarket and as I crossed the road, I got knocked down by a car that broke my leg. I did not get proper medication and as I was recovering, the bone got deformed but I never realized it was serious because I could walk freely and played basketball"

"Because I was born normal, I grew up playing basketball and I still like it very much, besides by then I had never seen or heard of a sport called sitting volleyball."

"I think the most important thing is for a person to be happy and to be good where they are, not the money."

"Coaches ought to converse with athletes, with objectives they have to contribute a lot to the development of swimming sport in the country."

"Our aim is to develop the swimming sport in Rwanda, honoring athletes and their coaches. So, there is much more to come."

"Psychology is a fundamental tool for everyone, although not everyone can afford it."

"When you look at the list and see certain names, you don’t really know the criteria to choose from, but I dedicate myself to my business, to meet my personal goals, which are what make me more satisfied. I don’t have to wait for anyone to recognize what I do, I am the one who has to be satisfied and proud of myself."

"The best players are intelligent, able to read the game, anticipate things,”"

"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 about what is happening within the group of people you have chosen to go with. The teams who failed, very few of them where actually stopped by the mountain. Even the ones caught in the storm they made complacent mistakes that made them vulnerable when things went wrong and then the teams that succeed it’s about the set of intangible tools a real clarity of purpose for your team"

"That thing you did 10 years ago that was significant everyone is doing it now. The thing you did a year ago, you’ve been copied"

"Mt. Everest is now the wealthy executive’s midlife crises."

"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."

"The better I got, the greater the pressure and the tougher his feedback would get."

"I think women need more representation. Not just because we are women, but because we are incredible athletes. Incredible athletes should all be given the same opportunities."

"Unfortunately, injuries are a natural part of football."

"If I had a bad game or something like that, especially in the very beginning, it was such a hard transitional period that I would just really get in my head."

"I want to be a part of something that is spearheading the movement, if that makes sense? I’m actually investing in seeing myself as an equal to my male counterparts."

"The experiences that I have had definitely help to deal with different types of pressure."

"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."

"Fame is just another thing you have to deal with. My life has changed in the last year and it’s still changing, but I’m just concentrating on what I do every day. The rest doesn’t bother me."

"I won’t risk the years I have left to play."

"We have to do exercises to normalize the fact that there is a football, which is played by men and women, and above all to report a lot because it is difficult for me to find information about when it is played. The day I get an interview and can talking about football is that we have achieved it (the normalization of women’s football)."

"But when you put in the work and people have faith in you, the results come. That’s how it has been for me."

"I feel the social responsibility that comes with being a woman, my mother has it, you have it. The fact of being a woman means you have a social responsibility because in history, amongst all of them, they have brought about change such as women's suffrage etc. Now we are fighting for equal opportunities, valuing a person regardless of their sex and that is important for all women, that we are all conscious of that whatever our profession may be. Ours, even more so because I have not had female role models. Girls today see that they have named several Barça players as the best in Europe and the most important thing is that these girls have the opportunity to do the same. There is still a way to go."

"I try things that maybe others wouldn't."

"I'm a risk-taker, my life is lived on the edge - I either go big or go home."

"It’s only a crazy dream until you do it."

"Now it is all about doing what I love, I’m relaxed and enjoying what I’m doing and when the goals come you have more fun. It’s a ripple effect."

"I’ve always stayed true to who I am, no matter what’s going on. It sounds cliche but where there’s a will there’s a way, and I hope people can take away from my experience that they don’t have to fit into a certain box to make it; they can be themselves and make it and that be OK."

"I’m a big goal-setter. I write them down before the start of a season. I used to write them down in a journal but now I keep them in my phone. I have short and long-term goals, but I always make sure I include goals that are easy to smash because I feel this helps me along the way."

"To overcome racial inequality, we must confront our history."

"I didn’t take the job with the intention of breaking any glass ceilings. I’m not an activist, I’m just Michele."

"Barriers are constantly and arbitrarily erected with systems and institutional power telling people what is and is not possible."

"I know that I'm constitutionally incapable of being talked down to."

"All I want is to be treated with respect and have my professionalism be honored. People who are out to get you either to destroy you, on the one extreme, or simply to humiliate and insult you or disrespect you."

"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."

"Many of the things I would wish to do are beyond my control. I would need swimming pools of international standard during my training, have more practice time and participate in many competitions before the Olympics."

"At first I tried out a few disciplines before settling for swimming. Then what followed was a lot of learning and training to become a professional."

"Swimming always challenges an athlete mentally and physically. It is an individual sport, you don’t have a teammate to pass the ball to like in football and team sports. You compete against others, but also with yourself."

"Many of the things I would wish to do are beyond my control."