Hope Solo

“My life is a beautiful struggle.”

“I usually tell people I watch like '24' and 'Prison Break.'”

“I think at an early age I learned not to judge people.”

“When I was younger, I was a complete tomboy. Then in college I started emerging out of the tomboy stage and dressing differently.”

“I hate the cliche of 'just have fun,' but what I've seen in today's sports, especially with parents, is they put so much pressure on the kids.”

“I played in Europe and it was a great experience, not just because of my team-mates and the coaches we had, but from the fans and the city itself - I played in Gothenburg and I played in Lyon and soccer was everywhere.”

“I think every athlete has their window of opportunity, and you just have to jump on it. You never know when it can end. So I'm just trying to live large while I have the opportunity.”

“I never felt the same passion for the game in the States and there were a lot of headaches, a lot of obstacles to overcome - it didn't just run itself for the love of the game because soccer is not the No. 1 sport as it is in Europe.”

“I think people who don't have conflict in their lives are just trying to please people and not really living life to the fullest.”

“I don't just want to focus on soccer, soccer, soccer.”

“My father was never around. But I glorified my father, and I was always daddy's little girl. He was my first soccer coach.”

“Everybody should be affected by their own realities in their own lives, their own struggles in their own lives. It makes us who we are, and we all know that.”

“I am proud of who I am, and nobody's going to steal that.”

“I'm just going to embrace every experience.”

“Unfortunately, people think I'm negative and bitter all the time, and that's not the case.”

“It took putting one foot in front of the other every single day to get through it to the point where I made it back on the team and won a gold medal in 2008.”

“My personal life is in the spotlight, but people say what they want to say. The truth isn't in the spotlight, I should say. I'm in the spotlight, but not the truth.”

“There are so many different walks of life, so many different personalities in the world. And no longer do you have to be a chameleon and try and adapt to that environment - you can truly be yourself.”

“I take everything with a grain of salt.”

“One thing I've learned in life is that I can speak for myself, that I can fight my own battles. I don't like anyone telling me how I'm supposed to feel or think or what I'm supposed to say.”