Nicola Adams

“I'm good at clearing things out. If I haven't worn something for a while, I'll give it away to charity.”

“In places like the U.S. and Germany, women's professional boxing is already quite big, but I'd like to be the name that makes it bigger and gives it more global appeal.”

“All I want is to keep boxing for Great Britain and inspire others.”

“I got my inspiration when I sat down with my father, at about eight or nine years old, and watched 'The Rumble in the Jungle.'”

“Even though I am a woman boxer, I am not just inspiring women; I hope I am inspiring boys as well.”

“I wouldn't call myself a feminist. I am just me. I like boxing and acting and doing my charity work.”

“I went into boxing, and I'm bisexual, and I still achieved and performed at the highest level, and I came away with gold and made history, so with that said, anything is possible.”

“Our boxing is not like the men's. It's more thoughtful, more technical. It's not just, 'Get in there and hurt someone.'”

“A couple of weeks after the Olympics, I thought I'd pop down to my local supermarket and do some grocery shopping. One person came up to me in the frozen food aisle, and that was it. I was mobbed, and I had to leave my shopping. Now, I either shop online or go very late at night when the supermarket's nearly empty.”

“It isn't just sports people that need someone to look up to - everyone needs that: LGBT people, the general public. To be honest, it's nice to feel that I can inspire so many people in so many areas of public life.”

“When The Queen invited the Olympians to the Palace, I was first in line to speak to her. She said she watched the Games and how happy she was, how impressed she was with the boxing. She told me she'd watched my fight and enjoyed it. I didn't realise the effect I'd had on the whole country.”

“Spiders keep me awake at night. If I see one that's too big to get under a glass, there will be big problems. I'll spend the rest of the day feeling like I'm being terrorised by this missing spider.”

“I want to be the European, Olympic, Commonwealth and world champion. I want the full set.”

“One girl said when I won my gold that was what inspired her to do boxing. She was only 12, and that is the same age I was when I first started.”

“Everybody wants that spot: everybody wants to beat Nicola Adams. Everybody wants to be the Olympic champion; everybody wants to beat the Olympic champion. It's made me train that much harder and stay that much more focused. I guess, in a way, I've got them to thank for keeping me motivated and focused on the job I need to do.”

“Muhammad Ali meant everything to me. He inspired me to box after watching re-runs of him winning a gold medal in the Olympics and being a world champion.”

“To finally become world champion after losing out in three previous finals is very satisfying. It shows that if you stick to your goals and work hard, you can achieve them in the end.”

“Women boxers prefer to focus on the win rather than the bravado. We've come a long way. In the '90s, you only ever saw women parading in heels and a bikini holding a scorecard. Now we're owning it; we should get some male models in Speedos to do the ring walk.”

“My family and friends are the only people I pay mind to. It's none of my business what anyone else thinks. I don't even know them, so why should I care?”

“I love shopping, but I only really have time to do it online.”