Top 98 Quotes & Sayings by Katarina Johnson-Thompson - Page 2

I used to keep injuries to myself. It would just make it worse and worse. Now I'm having none of that.

You don't have to be a bodybuilder to have strength in your muscles.

It's impossible in heptathlon to have a proper rivalry - you're spending two days together and seven events and dedicate your life to it. It's like a marathon: two days of mental and physical exhaustion.

There will be mental worries with the long jump before Rio, but I know I can get through it. It's just getting my confidence back. I know I have a big jump in me.

I'm going to trust my instincts when something's wrong.

I actually hated dancing. My mum used to have to bribe me to go by buying me things. A year before I stopped going, I was going to go for an audition with the Royal Ballet. It turned out I was a year too young. Because I was tall, they thought I was older. But before I had the chance to go back, I quit.

The heptathlon is made up of seven events, and people have strengths and weaknesses.

Every international meeting or championship I do, I can cope a lot better because I can say I did the 100 m. hurdles, opened up the athletics at an Olympic Games in front of a home crowd, 80,000 people.

Mum is the girliest of them all, but she ended up with me, the tomboy.

It's crazy because it's a British record and a personal best, but I wanted that 2 m. I cleared the 1.97 m. first attempt with space, so I think I could have done a little better.

If I can put it together, I've got an opportunity to win.

I'm trying my best.

You don't not want to beat somebody because you're friends with them.

It's a huge step up from the European Indoor Championships to being world outdoor gold medallist.

My mum was a dancer. She would tour the world with a group, and she had me in a dance class when I was still in a nappy. They told her to come back when I could walk.

I used to play football with a load of lads, and I would be like a secret agent going out with a hat on so they wouldn't see my hair in a bun.

As soon as I could talk, I chose shorts to wear.

I think I've slayed my long jump demons.

I was one of those girls in class who always had her hair in plaits, was always with the boys, always playing football in the street.

I don't do athletics for any other reason than achieving certain distances, certain titles and goals in my head.

I've always believed in myself, and it's such a long competition over two days, you can't worry about what anyone else is doing.

I've always known that Rio and Tokyo are my two Olympics. Now that Rio hasn't gone to plan, Tokyo has to work, and I'm more motivated than ever.

At primary school, it was always me and this other girl, Lauren, who would fight over who was the fastest every year. I was quicker, but for some reason, she always got the glory leg in the relay team. That used to annoy me.

They're just my weaknesses. Everyone is just constantly talking to me about it. It doesn't help.

In boxing, it's one fight, so it's easier to build up rivalries, but everyone's got huge respect for each other.

It's very easy to run a good 200 m. after an appalling shot put.

Obviously, when you're up against somebody you don't like there's extra motivation, but I don't think any person going for an Olympic gold is going to put friendship first.

It was just me and my mum growing up, and my mum's always said that's why I'm so mature. We were best friends, and if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't even have started athletics, because she wanted me to have a hobby.

I've always followed this page on Instagram called the Sausage Dog Hotel.

There's a big debate whether pentathlon or heptathlon is harder: five events in one day or seven in two.

My goal is definitely a gold medal still in Rio.

I am going to Rio with a chance of a medal.

It's what happens in other major championships - I just lose my head a little bit.

As a Liverpool fan, I'm an eternal optimist because of what we did in Istanbul in 2005.

London 2012 was the biggest thing I will probably ever do, but I didn't realise it at the time!

I've got so many big gains to make in the javelin and the shot put. I know I'm not going to be winning the field in those events, but I need to do myself justice.

When you see all the medals won by Team GB, you can just see how much it means to each and every athlete, so it just feel like it's a little bit of a missed opportunity - but I'm only 23. I have just got to get on now and keep going.

This is my job. I just wake up, and I train.