Medal Quotes & Sayings

As a teenager I had no idea that I had the potential to win an Olympic gold medal and my athletic career developed only by lucky circumstances. — Peter Snell

I think the mental victory is worth it as much as a gold medal. — Cameron Van Der Burgh

Twenty years from now, I can look at this medal and say, 'I was the best quarter-miler in the world on that day.' If you don't think that's important, you don't know what's inside an athlete's soul. — Vincent Matthews

Maybe there's a little girl who thinks she can be an Olympic athlete, and she sees all the things I struggled through to get here. Yeah, I didn't walk away with a medal or run away with a medal, but I think there's lessons to be learned when you win and lessons to be learned when you lose. — Lolo Jones

In the history of each sport, the heroes who win the Olympic gold medal are the ones we remember. Nobody remembers the World Champion 25 years ago, but everyone remembers who the Olympic Champions were, even 100 years ago. — Lavinia Milosovici

One particular game sticks in my mind: in March 2007 we went to Middlesbrough during a three-month period when we had the Swedish striker, Henrik Larsson, on loan from Helsingborgs. I could not have asked more from him when, under real pressure, he abandoned his attacking position and fell back into midfield just to help dig out the result. When Henrik appeared in the dressing room at the end of the game, all the players and staff stood up and spontaneously broke into applause for the immense effort he had made in his unaccustomed role. At the end of the season we requested an extra Premier League winners' medal for Henrik, even though he had not played the ten games that at the time were required to obtain the award. — Alex Ferguson

Once 'Walk Two Moons' received the Newbery Medal, I decided to write full-time. Partly because there seemed to be an audience out there who wanted to read what I wanted to write, and partly because I could now support myself financially through writing. — Sharon Creech

Medals are great encouragement to young men and lead them to feel their work is of value, I remember how keenly I felt this when in the 1890s. I received the Darwin Medal and the Huxley Medal. When one is old, one wants no encouragement and one goes on with one's work to the extent of one's power, because it has become habitual. — Karl Pearson

I'm not disappointed with bronze. It's always good to come away with a medal. — Bryan Volpenhein

[Khrushchev] should get a one-ton medal. — Mao Zedong

But that's the wrong question. Ask why everyone else is so pathetically stupid and why they're always whining about detention, I should get a medal for not slapping people in the face every day. — Laurie Halse Anderson

I have learned from the first Olympics, of course. When I went to my first Olympic Games, I experienced all of the pressure and was able to win the gold medal. I try not to feel the pressure, and I try not to be nervous when I am on the ice and when I compete. — Kim Yuna

Paul McCartney, the ex-Beatle Brady's mom used to call Old Spaniel Eyes, is getting a medal at the White House. Why is it, Brady sometimes wonders, that people with only a little talent get so much of everything? It's just another proof that the world is crazy. — Stephen King

There was little sign of culture, and the luxury was senseless and haphazard, and was as ill fitting as that uniform. The floors irritated him with their brilliant polish, the lustres on the chandelier irritated him, and he was reminded for some reason of the story of the merchant who used to go to the baths with a medal on his neck ... — Anton Chekhov

I think I dreamed about competing at the Olympics, maybe hoping to win a gold medal. Not that I ever thought that I would, but I dreamed about it. — Dorothy Hamill

I leered at him and lifted my eyebrows up as I looked pointedly at his belt buckle. "It wasn't anything to write home about. I've seen bigger and better." His deserved more than a letter home, it deserved a whole novel of descriptive words and flowery admiration. I would even go so far as to say it deserved a medal and an award of honor. — Jay Crownover

It is a wonderful honor to receive the Audubon Medal from the National Audubon Society, which for more than a century has fought tirelessly to protect and preserve our natural resources and environment for future generations. — Louis Bacon

If I could bronze my love, it'd be worthy of a silver medal. — Dark Jar Tin Zoo

He folded back the hem of her housedress. Peeled the wet underpants from her skin and moved them down over her pale knees and her small feet and then dropped them on the floor. He could hear the voices of the children playing in the tree outside. He gently pushed her thighs apart and saw immediately that the baby had already begun to crown. Her skin was paler than his wife's was, even in midwinter. He gave her his hand to get her through the next contraction, keeping his arm steady as she squeezed. He spread the fingers of the other over her taut belly. Mr. Persichetti wore a silver Saint Christopher's medal around his neck and kept a Sacred Heart scapular in his pocket, but when Mary Keane asked him, catching her breath, "Who's the patron saint of women in labor?" he shrugged. He told her he only knew Saint Dymphna was the patron of the insane. He'd had the — Alice McDermott

I wasn't even sure why I was getting this medal, really.
No, that's not true. I knew why.
It's like people you see sometimes, and you can't imagine what it would be like to be that person, whether it's somebody in a wheelchair or somebody who can't talk. Only, I know that I'm that person to other people, maybe to every single person in that whole auditorium.
To me, though, I'm just me. An ordinary kid.
But hey, if they want to give me a medal for being me, that's okay. I'll take it. I didn't destroy a Death Star or anything like that, but I did just get through the fifth grade. And that's not easy, even if you're not me. — R.J. Palacio

WikiLeaks is a service to the population. Assange should get an award for - presidential medal of honor. — Noam Chomsky

Gender is a race in which some of the runners compete only for the bronze medal. — Yuval Noah Harari

And what is a gold medal? I'd never really thought about it before Nagano. Now I realize that it's a dream to strive for. I love my silver medal, because it stands for all my dreams and all I'm still capable of fulfilling — Michelle Kwan

It's an interesting thing in this country. I haven't won a gold medal, yet Australians still take me into their houses and hearts, they know my name and they care. I think Aussies like the little Aussie battler and the person who will stand up for their rights and I've never been short of a word, especially with officialdom. — Raelene Boyle

I am remarkably likeable. Few people have ever been as likeable as I am. There is, frankly, no end to my likeability. People gather together in public assemblies to discuss how much they like me. I have several awards, and a small medal from a small country in South America which pays tribute both to how much I am liked and my general all around wonderfulness. I don't have it on me, of course. I keep my medals in my sock drawer. — Neil Gaiman

Standing on the podium at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta and receiving a gold medal was the crowning jewel in a successful gymnastics career and, most certainly, the confirmation that my parents' sacrifices were not in vain. — Dominique Moceanu

I think every Negro over fifty should get a medal for putting up with all that crap. — Miles Davis

I wouldn't say that there's ever been an Olympic champion that didn't deserve to win an Olympic Gold Medal. — Dorothy Hamill

Not all good works can turn a profit, but profits can be directed toward good. As Warren Buffett explains, "I've worked in an economy that rewards someone who saves the lives of others on a battlefield with a medal, rewards a great teacher with thank-you notes from parents, but rewards those who can detect the mispricing of securities with sums reaching into the billions. — William D. Eggers

A marathoner is an individual who displays exceptional endurance. True. But I think the exceptional marathoner is the individual who completes the great distance without all the launched confetti, without all the refueling stations, and without the receipt of a finisher's medal. Whether they know it or not. — Stephanie Brochinsky

Olympic medals are the one medal that I don't have; I've won just about every other competition that I've been at. — Eric Shanteau

Nobody loves the Boston Marathon as much as the people who make fun of it year after year. This was the race that previously offered as a prize a not particularly expensive medal, a laurel wreath, and a bowl of beef stew. This was the race that, on one memorable occasion, nobody knew who actually won. — Charlie Pierce

You want to know what I make? I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could. I can make a C+ feel like a Congressional Medal of Honor and an A-minus feel like a slap in the face. — Taylor Mali

Americans have a profound longing for heroes - now perhaps more than ever. We need our explorers, our sports icons, our Medal of Freedom winners, our Nobel laureates. We need our Greatest Generation warriors, our 'Sully' Sullenbergers, our Neil Armstrongs. On some level, we still subscribe to the myth of the man in the white hat. — Hampton Sides

The fact is I am a compulsive reader. Thirty-five cents' worth of Gold Medal Original will put me right to sleep. Or Perry Mason. But I'll read the ads in an old Paris-Match that has been used to wrap herring before I'll do without. — Robert A. Heinlein

I watched the Olympics as a kid. It would be fun to try to win a medal. If I could swap Olympic gold for a US PGA Championship? I'd take the Major every time. — Luke Donald

The Air Force pinned a medal on me for killing a man and discharged me for making love to one. — Leonard Matlovich

If surviving assassination attempts were an Olympic event, I would win the gold medal. — Fidel Castro

I'd accomplished everything I had set out to do - winning the French and Australian Opens, the Olympic gold medal and the Davis Cup. So I said to myself: 'Why don't you try another year and see if you can enjoy your tennis like you did once?' And I've been doing it. — Yevgeny Kafelnikov

Breaking the world record in '92 was a very special personal moment, but I'd say my favorite moment as a decathlete was winning the Olympic gold medal. — Dan O'Brien

You may have a silver medal, but I was the top scorer on my second grade team. — Leslea Wahl

It was warm, and outside the sound of insects in the night was electric.
The music sounded better than anything I'd ever heard.
I had never been so happy in my life.
I played with the little silver medal against my bare chest.
I wrote poetry while we sat there like that in the dark and talked about our favorite poems and books and laughed and smoked. — Andrew Smith

The medal recipients, sixty-two in al, were summoned to the dais. Like many of the other men, Christopher was dressed in private clothes, having left the ranks at the conclusion of the war. Unlike the other men, Christopher was holding a leash. Attached to a dog. For reasons that had not been explained, he had been told to bring Albert to the presentation. The other Rifles whispered encouragements as Albert walked obediently beside Christopher.
"There's a good boy!"
"Look smart, fellow!"
"No accidents in front of the queen!"
"And all that goes for you too, Albert," someone added, causing the lot of them to snicker.
Giving his friends a damning glance, which only amused them further, Christopher took Albert to meet the queen. — Lisa Kleypas

You know Sarkozy offered me the Legion d'honneur medal? I refused. People said I refused because I don't like Sarkozy, but that's ridiculous. I refused because I don't like decorations - except on women. — Azzedine Alaia

And I want a gold medal more than anything. I just want a gold medal, so that's been pushing me forward. — Alicia Sacramone

Receiving the Newcombe Medal for a third year in a row is an amazing honour. The Newcombe Medal is a great occasion for the Australian tennis community to come together and celebrate our sport, recognise people's achievements and contributions to Australian tennis. — Samantha Stosur

For decades, this great leader, often at Dr. King's side, was denied his rightful place in history because he was openly gay. No medal can change that, but today, we honor Bayard Rustin's memory by taking our place in his march towards true equality, no matter who we are or who we love. — Barack Obama

An Olympic gold medal is something that almost seems like a fantasy. Yes, of course I want it, since I was a little kid, before I even knew what the World Cup tour was. — Hannah Kearney

Surprisingly enough, I haven't had a letter from Amateur Boxing Scotland bosses offering their congratulations for my Melbourne medal win. — Kenny Anderson

I know my Beijing medal has been a watershed moment in the history of Indian boxing, but personally speaking, I would like to better it in London. — Vijender Singh

What are you doing?" He flops down next to me. "Checking your email?
St. Clair snorts. "Give the lad a medal for his brilliant skills in detection. — Stephanie Perkins

To have this gold medal around my neck is an indescribable feeling. I'm the happiest person right now. — Jordyn Wieber

I hoped to win a medal and hoped it would be gold. I knew I was good but didn't know I would be the one to score something that had never been done before. — Nadia Comaneci

There's not a day that goes by that I don't bless myself with holy water and then get in my car and rub the medal of the Virgin Mary that she gave me and say a Hail Mary for my mother. And then I kiss her Mass card that's right there on the dashboard. — Peter Criss

When, during the Second World War, the island of Malta came through three terrible years of bombardment and destruction, it was rightly awarded the George Medal for bravery: today Israel should be awarded a similar decoration for defending democracy, tolerance and Western values against a murderous onslaught that has lasted twenty times as long. — Andrew Roberts

It really means a lot that I won the gold medal - but I woke up the next morning expecting to feel different. I felt the same. — Dan O'Brien

I feel like at the Olympics I gave the best performance of my life and I wasn't rewarded for that as an athlete. Yes, my fans and my mom were happy about it, but I didn't win that gold medal. — Johnny Weir

So what if I never win my fifth gold medal; It's only one end of the string. It's competing that matters. It's proving that there is a place for guys like me in sports. It's a persona challenge to extend myself. — Al Oerter

I wanted to win the gold medal and then go home and further my education in college. I had no intentions whatsoever to become a professional fighter because I had heard horror stories about former boxers who made money but, in the end, ended up with nothing. I didn't want to be one of those guys. — Sugar Ray Leonard

I am a freestyle mogul skier who, on February 13, became the first American to win a gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. — Hannah Kearney

I'm just glad my gold medal's at home, because I'd hate to try to win another. — Caitlyn Jenner

I'm a bad son of a bitch, I'm a hard son of a bitch, I deserve a frigging medal. — Jackson Spencer Bell

...one family's most beloved recipes can become a delicious cornerstone as humanity builds a more pluralistic world where the best pieces of every culture can be enjoyed. — Karen Anderson

I know at least what I am,' he simply went on; 'the other side of the medal's clear enough. I've not been edifying
I believe I'm thought in a hundred quarters to have been barely decent. I've followed strange paths and worshipped strange gods; it must have come to you again and again
in fact you've admitted to me as much
that I was leading, at any time these thirty years, a selfish frivolous scandalous life. And you see what it has made of me. — Henry James

I could be winning the decathlon in high school, which I've won twice, yet, if my dad is in the audience, 'Oh look! It's Anthony Quinn.' And I'm like, 'Hello? Kid just got a gold medal. Hello? I'm over here.' — Francesco Quinn

Meaning is found not in the rewards, for they are only tokens. Seek not to have the gold medal. Instead, seek to be the person who can win the gold medal. It is in the quest that you'll find the fulfillment which the reward represents. — Ralph Marston

After September 11th, I never much liked the trend of everyone and his brother wearing the hats and jackets of the NYPD and FDNY. Only the people who do the job should get to wear the hat. Would you wear someone else's Medal of Honor?
Yes, it's a tribute, and sincere tribute is always appropriate for these brave people. But wearing their symbols is also rubbing off a piece of heroism that isn't yours. — Bill Maher

Looking back, I'm so proud to have gone to five Olympics - I believe only three other Americans have achieved that. My true gold medal, though, is my daughter, Karsen, who is 18 months old. And I have a wonderful husband, Mike. — Gail Devers

Nobody strikes a medal for the Royal Military Canal campaign any more, but a pint in the back bar of the ancient Mermaid Inn, perched in front of one of the biggest and oldest inglenooks you're ever likely to see, is its own reward. — David Hewson

I think if I am to win an Olympic medal I'll have to score like I did today. — Tom Daley

If I had to pick one exact moment when we were live on air and something very, very special happened it was at the Athens Olympics. Chris Hoy won the Gold Medal in the kilometre time trial and that was incredible. — Jill Douglas

As badly as I want a medal, I know there is a lot of luck involved in that. I want to put myself in position to be in the top three, give it my all and hope luck comes my way. — Kara Goucher

We're workers, they say. Work, they call it! That's the crummiest part of the whole business. We're down in the hold, heaving and panting, stinking and sweating our balls off, and meanwhile! Up on deck in the fresh air, what do you see?! Our masters having a fine time with beautiful pink and perfumed women on their laps. They send for us, we're brought up on deck. They put on their top hats and give us a big spiel like as follows: "You no-good swine! We're at war! Those stinkers in Country No. 2! We're going to board them and cut their livers out! Let's go! Let's go! We've got everything we need on board! All together now! Let's hear you shout so the deck trembles: 'Long live Country No. 1!' So you'll be heard for miles around. The man that shouts the loudest will get a medal and a lollipop! Let's — Louis-Ferdinand Celine

You know, there's something especially lonely about a gold medal hanging all by itself on a bedroom wall, something that says "fluke," or "beginner's luck," or "one in a million," but two gold medals, now that says something completely different. That says, "Oh, yeah, baby, this is the real deal! — Christopher Paul Curtis

Queen Bee hates me. I know, as I reach the door, that nothing good waits for me on the other side. When you're called to see the Commanding Officer, you're either getting a medal or a kick in the arse.

And I'm not getting any medals. — John Owen Theobald

Pinn just won a medal for intelligence,' Frey said, shaking his head as he clapped. 'I don't want to live on this planet any more. — Chris Wooding

I'll spend time playing 'Call of Duty' and 'Medal of Honor.' — Kevin Dillon

You're a monster.
Thanks. Does this mean I get a raise?
No, just a medal. The budget isn't inexhaustable. — Orson Scott Card

That's the all-American dessert. Any proud, red-blooded American should easily be able to consume a huge bowl of that with a smile before they went off to plant a flag somewhere or win a gold medal or something." "That is not the dessert of champions, baby." "It most certainly is." "My arteries hardened just looking at it. — Kristen Ashley

...the only guarantee in this fleeting market day we call life is that no matter how carefully you plod along, you'll grow old and get sick, or a force will sneak up on you in the dark and snuff you like piss on a campfire. Nobody is going to remember your hardest bouldering problem or that you sent your project. After a few years nobody cares who got the gold medal or the gold for that matter. Nobody care who sent what, when, where, why, and how. The memories fade, then just disappear...all that remains is the impact you had on other people — Jeff Jackson

I was still young when I missed Beijing. I was favourite to win a medal but I knew I had time. My coach advised me to stay at school and finish my exams. Even if I had gone and won the Olympics, I might not have handled the pressure. So I moved on. — David Rudisha

We had two goals ... One was to cherish every moment together, cherish the journey because the journey allows you to learn and grow. The other was to win a gold medal. — Kerri Walsh

It's the Olympics. And it was a long way for me. To compete at the Olympic Games, I dreamed of any medal, but frankly speaking, I wanted a gold one. — Adelina Sotnikova

I'm just so excited. We all are. We've been waiting for this [the gold medal] for years now and it's finally here. This meant so much. It just felt so good. — Kobe Bryant

Is a BJ adultery? What? Did I miss a day of school? Of course it is! Oral sex is adultery like Curling is an Olympic sport. The only thing is, oral sex should be in the Olympics because it's much harder than Curling, and if you're good at it, you DESERVE a medal! — Lewis Black

When you win the Olympics, you hope that the medal that you get, that weight makes it feel like you really earned something. — Charlie White

Everybody has to deal with tough times. A gold medal doesn't make you immune to that. A skater is used to falling down and getting up again. — Dorothy Hamill

Athens is a great place for me. It is my second home. It's where I won my first world championship medal, it's where I set my world record. — Maurice Greene

Oh God, my stomach must have won a medal- it's doing a lap of honour now. — Ali McNamara

You don't win an Olympic gold medal with a few weeks of intensive training. — Seth Godin

But hey, if they want to give me a medal for being me, that's okay. I'll take it. — R.J. Palacio

A dying old soldier rebuffed a nun every time she showed any kindness toward him. Finally, as he weakened, her perseverance caused him to show some civility. Realizing he was in danger of dying, the sister spoke to him of baptism. The old soldier was immediately displeased and told her he was too old to be plagued in that manner. During the next two weeks, at every possible occasion, the nun mentioned baptism. Each time he rejected her.
On the last evening of his life, the sister was ready to leave him. With her rosary in hand, she removed the medal of Mary she wore and slipped it quietly under his pillow without the old soldier seeing her. As she left him, she prayed, "I can do no more for this man; I leave him to you."
The next morning the nun returned, and he asked her for a drink. Then he said, "Sister, I want no breakfast today, but I wish to be baptized. — George Sheldon

My goal is one Olympic gold medal. Not many people in this world can say, 'I'm an Olympic gold medalist.' — Michael Phelps

Getting the Games for London has been the fulfilment of a dream. It is one which I truly believe can change the lives of hundreds of thousands of young people for the better. But in the end, nothing can quite compare with winning your first Olympic gold medal. — Sebastian Coe

I hope that this medal inspires the kids at home to put down guns and knives and pick up a pair of trainers instead. — Erick Barrondo

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth disputed whether John Kerry deserved some of his five medals. A large part of Kerry's defense was an appeal to the authority of veterans who supported him-one of whom has now been revealed to have received a medal he doesn't deserve. This doesn't prove the Kerry detractors were right, but it certainly doesn't weaken their case. — James Taranto

If you make it into an Olympic team, you're good; if you make it into an Olympic final, you're great; and if you win an Olympic medal you're a freak. — Raelene Boyle

Some men want to win a gold medal, some want a family, some want to be rich, some want to be free, some want to kill other men, and some men want to do the right thing. Me, I only want you. — Aleksandr Voinov

Saint Christopher, who said, Where can I get a Frank Sinatra medal? Never got a dinner! — Red Buttons

As a soccer player, I wanted an FA Cup winner's medal. As an actor you want an Oscar. As a chef it's three-Michelin's stars, there's no greater than that. So pushing yourself to the extreme creates a lot of pressure and a lot of excitement, and more importantly, it shows on the plate. — Gordon Ramsay