It's very hard to win anything in athletics.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Among the world elite there are a handful of athletes who are physically capable of winning it.
It's a very competitive thing, pro sports. The hardest thing in pro sports is staying up there.
Swimming is one of the hardest sports.
I am one of those athletes who is very hard on myself.
Boxing, mixed martial arts and tennis are the hardest sports to train for.
I think nowadays it's so easy as an athlete to become a statistic whether or not you lose everything or having trouble or whatever it may be.
An athlete must have ability to reach the top, but many who have ability and who do not live clean lives never have and never will be champions for obvious reasons.
You need three things to win: discipline, hard work and, before everything maybe, commitment. No one will make it without those three. Sport teaches you that.
Every quarterback can throw a ball; every running back can run; every receiver is fast; but that mental toughness that you talk about translates into competitiveness.
The great thing about athletics is that it's like poker sometimes: you know what's in your hand, and it may be a load of rubbish, but you've got to keep up the front.