Nadia Comaneci Quotes
-
You can't jump from little things to big things. It just takes time and patience.
-
I wanted to have a free life.
-
My mother never watched me train in Romania. She wasn't allowed, it just wasn't done back then. My training was paid for by the government. My parents were not at the Olympics with me, either. I never expected them to be.
-
I was turning actually 15 at the Olympics in '76... I don't think that one year makes a huge difference.
-
I cannot change anything, so I don't want to think about what I would have done.
-
We used to exchange leotards with gymnasts from other countries. I don't remember who I got my most prized leotard from, but it was one with a lot of stars on it.
-
Gymnastics should be popular everywhere; you just need the right person to start the right programme.
-
I like America. I don't want to hurt America.
-
It was good to be a kid because I did not realise all the things that came with the success. Going to the Games, I was asked what I expected to do.
-
Maybe that's why I like gymnastics - because I like to fly.
-
At 14, you think you compete, you retire and you get a job. I didn't think gymnastics was a career that was going to change my life.
-
I couldn't do everything in the first or second day; it took me years to be able to get to the achievement that I've had. I wasn't perfect from the beginning.
-
I don't run away from a challenge because I am afraid. Instead, I run toward it because the only way to escape fear is to trample it beneath your feet.
-
I am very highly appreciated in my country, and everybody seems to love me.
-
The fans had become used to looking toward the scoreboard whenever a gymnast stuck a landing. You could tell they were thinking, 'Was that good enough? Would the numbers read 10.00?' The athlete was looking, too.
-
I am a relaxed person. I am very happy.
-
I like Oklahoma. It's a quiet place. You can work, and nobody disturbs you.
-
I always say, 'When the Olympics are happening, you shouldn't be in any other place in the planet - you should be here.'
-
I wasn't allowed to leave Romania. That made me mad. You just want your freedom. You want your space. You want opportunity.
-
Romania doesn't have a big tradition of gymnastics as a fun activity. We were a little behind in this aspect.
-
I live in the moment. I can turn the page and move on.
-
Enjoy the journey and try to get better every day. And don't lose the passion and the love for what you do.
-
I know how to smile, I know how to laugh, I know how to play. But I know how to do these things only after I have fulfilled my mission.
-
Romanians have a saying, 'Not every dog has a bagel on its tail.' It means that not all streets are paved with gold. When I began my career, I just wanted to do cartwheels.