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Thoughts on sportspersons

From Muhammad Ali to Milkha Singh, here are some thoughts worth ruminating upon from sportspersons

Published: Jul 10, 2021 10:59:23 AM IST
Updated: Jul 10, 2021 10:59:45 AM IST

Image: Bettmann / Getty Images

I don’t count my sit-ups. I only start counting once it starts hurting.

—Muhammad Ali

American boxer

You can achieve anything in life. It just depends on how desperate you are to achieve it.

—Milkha Singh

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Sprinter

Champions keep playing until they get it right.

—Billie Jean King

American tennis player

The more difficult the victory, the greater the happiness in winning.

—Pele

Brazilian footballer

If you have everything under control, you’re not moving fast enough.

—Mario Andretti

Italian-born American racing driver

You can’t put a limit on anything. The more you dream, the farther you get.

—Michael Phelps

American swimmer

Happiness is nothing but satisfaction—satisfaction through work, thoughts and accomplishing our mission.

—PT Usha

Track and field athlete

Practice is a talent. Perseverance is a talent.

Hard work is a talent.

—Abhinav Bindra

Sharp shooter

If you want to achieve something in life, you have to take risks.

—Dipa Karmakar

Gymnast

Some people say I have attitude—maybe I do…but I think you have to. You have to believe

in yourself when no one else does—that makes you a winner right there.

—Venus Williams

American tennis player

Whoever said, ‘It’s not whether you win or lose that counts’, probably lost.

—Martina Navratilova

Czech-American tennis player

At the end of the day, if I can say I had fun, it was a good day.

—Simone Biles

American gymnast

People praise you only till the time you are performing on the field; the day you stop, they won’t even look back at your career. You have to be practical as a player and keep performing.

—Jhulan Goswami

Cricketer

(This story appears in the 16 July, 2021 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)

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