Top 100 Quotes & Sayings by Geeta Phogat

After I stop wrestling, my dream is to open a wrestling academy, train students and produce more Geetas and Babitas!

Sometimes it boils down to a move or two and that makes all the difference.

Our parents faced more hardship than us. They didn't stop us from training despite hearing the taunts from the people in the village. We were fortunate to have parents like them.

In my village, girls have limited opportunities. If they get admission in a college, only a few households would allow them to go for further studies.

We had a very hard training during our childhood and I don't want to live it again.

We are proud to be role models.

We used to wear a track suit and T-shirt while training. But that did not go down well with the villagers, because women are usually supposed to wear salwar kameez.

Dangal' movie has been made on our lives in which two daughters win a medal for the country. It just shows that the times are changing and people's attitudes are changing and if it is changing because of us then we are very happy about it.

When Aamir Khan was in Haryana, we met him and he was very respectful to my parents.

Fitness for us on match day is paramount.

The coaches boosts our confidence when we lose. They remind us that we have done it once before and we can do it again.

My father gave us inner confidence. He taught us, as young girls, never to be scared.

World Championships is the toughest competition in the world.

Young girls in Haryana should speak their mind and not be afraid to challenge the system.

The contribution of my dad towards women's wrestling in Haryana is immense and his vision and determination have shaped several young careers.

I believe that if I can qualify for the Olympics, I have the skills to compete at the highest level and do good for my country.

It is extremely difficult to get a medal at the World Championships, even more than the Olympics. And when one is not 100 per cent prepared, it is next to impossible to win a medal there.

We see the worth and appreciate the discipline my father inculcated in us.

I've seen the success of Mary Kom at the Olympics... We stayed in the same flat. If she can win a medal after being the mother of two, why can't I?

I wear jeans and shorts. I travelled on my own to Mumbai for my knee surgery. I can go to Delhi when I want. Being a sportsperson helps me get away from the bhed bhav of Haryana.

I have overcome most of my fears.

My father was a disciplinarian. He had this cane and he would spare no one if found at fault. Unlike Babita, I was not physically strong and couldn't cope with the training. So I got the most beatings.

My father, once he has decided on something, doesn't care about what anyone else thinks. All the men in our family swore at him for training us. His parents said he was mad. But he didn't listen.

Everyone should be allowed to participate in sport, because it helps you to become more confident. That is important for women in India, because we are not always treated as equals.

We had to go to bed by 8 P.M. My siblings and I would often play cards under the bed-sheets. But we would get caught and then were made to practise harder. My father would say, 'You need to work even more if you aren't tired enough to go to sleep.'

It's about hard work and not gender.

My only aim is to win an Olympic medal.

I feel that Indian women are too frightened. They all say, 'I can't do this, I can't do that.' Worse, their families don't support them.

If you are not strong from inside you can never look beautiful from outside.

It's not easy to juggle between studies and sports but yes, if you are clear about your goals and have passion, you can definitely succeed.

Colorado Springs is a very good place to train ahead of the Olympics. We get to compete with different partners, learn different movements, we also get to improve upon our speed, which is very essential.

There were so many times when I felt like running away from the akhada. But now that we are bearing the fruits of all the hard work, we understand its value.

All young wrestlers would love to see their game back in Olympics.

Sushil is an experienced player, a big player.

I think staying away from wrestling for two years with injury and the movie, I lost my focus.

Everybody at the Olympics are almost at level par.

Yes, Indian wrestling has improved since foreign coaches came in because the skills and techniques they have is new to us.

We need to trust our coaches. Unless we trust them we can't get the result.

I come from a wrestling background - my father and grandfather were into wrestling.

You need a little bit of experience to do well in the Olympics.

Women sportspersons like Krishna Poonia and Seema Antil are role models for Haryanvi women.

Our akhara was very basic. It was just a little opening next to where the animals were tied. We had to first dig the soil with our bare hands, make it loose, before we could begin our session. I used to hate it. It also used to be either too hot or too cold. There were no mats, no mattresses, nothing.

Even my grandmother would tell me that girls should not wrestle, it's a man's game.

Things are not going to change until Indian women, and their parents, stop being afraid of what society will say. This is the single biggest obstacle. The fear of what people will say and how this will shame their parents means that women are paralysed.

I want to tell the students to follow their heart and respect their parents and teachers as they are their ultimate gurus.

There was no roof where we trained, so it used to get very hot during the day and the mud used to feel very cold during the evening.

We have regularly won medals at all tournaments and I think after 'Dangal,' the craze for wrestling increased among the girls.

Film as a medium has a power that sports like wrestling lack.

The media attention does not bother me. I am very happy that the media is at least interested in sports other than cricket.

Inner strength is very important.

Seeing my name in the newspapers after winning the national junior championship motivated me to win more medals and I have never looked back since then.

I come from a village where traditionally girls don't go out and play sport so I struggled a lot to come this far and to get to this position where I am at the Olympics.

Those who used to ask my father to be ashamed of himself for training us in wrestling now say they wish they have daughters like me.

No sport is easy, if you spend time away it will be difficult to make a comeback.

We did not had enough facilities in the village. My family was also not well off. There was no mat, no gym; we used to wrestle in the mud. It was very different from the national camps where I trained before the Commonwealth Games.

I was scared of water, so I learnt swimming.

In our village women are left to clean the house and milk the cattle so when I first entered the ring, I had to hear the criticism of people.

There is so much discrimination towards women in Haryana.

One never knows how a bout is going to pan out and even in last 2-3 seconds things can change.

You should concentrate on the segregation of waste, especially kitchen waste. Only after segregation the waste becomes useful and it can be recycled.