I think people admire us for dedicating our lives to be professional athletes. But we need more people to come and watch club games; we need to encourage girls to play football from an early age.
On television, I have watched countless athletes from different countries, sports and Olympics stand proudly at the top of the podium and shed tears. They symbolized the Olympics for me because Olympic medals represent all of the hard work and sacrifices made by the athletes as well as the people who helped them reach the top of their sports.
I went from 185 lbs to 285 lbs, became a 7X Mr. Olympia, tying Arnold Schwarzenegger, and competed against the most determined and fittest athletes in the world. This took hard work, tremendous dedication, and knowing what, how, and when to train.
If LeBron doesn't care about the regular season, why should fans? The answer: Russell Westbrook. Where LeBron and others are content to rest and save themselves for games they feel are more important, Westbrook has gone a different way.
A lot of my loyalty is to the wrestlers - the guys who put their heart and health on the line.
Sporting success doesn't happen by accident. It takes hard work and determination on the part of the individual athletes. And it also takes investment in facilities and training support.
Some people tell me that we professional players are soccer slaves. Well, if this is slavery, give me a life sentence.
The decathlon takes so long to learn that people who are good athletes don't want to go back to the beginning again.
