A competitive athlete is painful to look at; trying hard to become an animal rather than a man, he will never be as fast as a cheetah or as strong as an ox.
I know I belong at 170. There is not a shadow of a doubt. This is my division and there's a clearcut path to the title.
I could be a model for one night. But I'm also a professional soccer player, and I like to be taken seriously on the field.
When I play, I feel like I'm in a theatre, why should I look ugly then, because I'm a tennis-player?
I'm an athlete; my dad had made sure I played all the same sports as boys growing up, so I was always super competitive.
As an athlete, you can train for so many years to be a 5K/10K runner. That's who you are, and it's hard to change that. Not using that technique - almost like a sprint - that's when you have to loosen up and just save as much energy as you can.
I'm a professional wrestler at heart, and I miss it.
Am I athletic? In my dreams.
Handball, swimming, running, jumping, basketball, and boxing were as much a part of me as breathing.
I played rugby from the age of 10 until my late twenties; an unlikely player - small, quiet, long-haired and 'wiry.'
That's what I was known for: I was a gym rat.
I have my own batting style and don't want to be compared with Kohli.
I just wanna show people I'm a hooper.
I missed being considered an athlete and having that competitive drive, and missed having something to work for every day. I'd taken two and a half years away from the sport and was out of shape. I wanted to get back to where I was in 2008.
If a jayvee team puts on Lakers uniforms, that doesn't make them Kobe Bryant.
Call me a quarterback, not a running quarterback.
As a gymnast, I've always compartmentalized my life, which is a blessing and a curse. But over time, I've learned that my sport doesn't fully define me, and I think that's where a lot of the joy in my routines comes from now: I'm not compartmentalizing as much, and I know who I am beyond my sport.
We make a living playing basketball. You don't have to be a tough guy or a hard-ass to play this sport. You can be tough but you don't have to have that bravado. Sometimes it's good. But I'm not going to be someone I'm not. It's just me being me.
I'm just like the rest of the guys. I'm a little different in a lot of ways, but I'm still a player with a number on his back and if I'm unable to produce, they'll find somebody else to fill my spot.
I want to be known for my athletic achievements, not my celebrity.
25 was my number in high school and college. But when I got traded to Lakers, it was retired, and Derek Fisher had 2, so I was stuck with 5. Nothing more special behind it than that.
I play baseball. I don't deal with trades, free agency, any of that stuff.
I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast.
You guys know the way I play. And what's so ironic is, KG is the same way. I'm looking at him in practice and going, 'Wow, I'm always that guy,' you know?
Regarding the psychological, your goal must not be "I need to lose X pounds" but "I'm going to regain my identity," whether as an athlete, a conservative, a sexual being, a together person, whatever.
