Aly Raisman

“I'm just thinking about being the best I can be for the team first because that's what comes first.”

“I feel like I'm really blessed and lucky that I have a very good social life outside of the gym, and I have a really amazing family. My parents are so supportive. I have a younger brother and two younger sisters, and they're really awesome. So I feel like I get the best of both worlds.”

“Every training camp is important so you can show you're improving and staying consistent.”

“I made myself a little angry before beam. That's the best way to do beam. It's important to fuel yourself with some devastating things, but I also realized that if I daydream about doing well and having this silver medal, it's more motivating than focusing on the negatives. So I learned to focus on the positive.”

“My school friends are really understanding and still want to hang out with me. Ever since I was in sixth grade, I was at the gym every day to work out while my friends were getting their nails done or going to the mall. I used to feel left out, but I don't anymore.”

“Sometimes I want to be a normal kid and go to the beach, but it's so motivating to think about going to the Olympics again. I'll only be 22 years old after Rio, and I can do whatever I want.”

“I feel like the thing that motivates me is not making the Olympic team. If I'm having a rough day, I think about how bad I want it.”

“I just stay focused, and I always think about gymnastics. I am just doing what I always do... working really hard and pushing myself to the maximum and keeping myself motivated.”

“I was two years old when my mom put me in mommy and me classes. I always had a lot of energy so it was the perfect fit!”

“I'm focused now, definitely. I absolutely need to show everyone that I'm powerful and strong and can be graceful and artistic, too.”

“I was always really inspired by watching the older girls competing, just seeing other Olympians do great things, and I just really wanted to be a part of that whole experience. And to be able to represent USA was always a goal of mine.”

“We get so caught up in winning all the time, but it's also even more important to be a good person, so that's what I learned.”

“I've never been cocky. Even right now I don't like to talk about the Olympics.”

“I was so happy to go to prom so I could have a mental break because I've been working so hard. It felt so good to feel normal for once, and then the next day, I was in the gym again.”

“When I first turned elite in gymnastics, when I was 14, that's when I really became more inspired than ever. I just always kept that in the back of my mind, and always thought about making the 2012 team.”

“If I had tried the Olympics any younger, I wouldn't have been as prepared as I am right now. But there are definitely a ton of juniors out there, all around the world and in the USA, that if there was no age limit, they could definitely make the Olympic team.”

“When I'm older, I want to have my own workout clothes line, like leggings and cute jackets in bright and fun colors.”

“Tumbling has always been my favorite.”

“Everyone is like, 'What were you thinking on the podium?' I'm like, I'm just like probably thinking, like, 'We're hungry,' to be honest.”

“Gymnastics is my whole life, and I dream of going to the Olympics and being a world champ.”