Pain is nothing compared to what it feels like to quit. Give everything you got today for tomorrow may never come.
The 1st period is won by the best technician. The 2nd period is won by the kid in the best shape. The 3rd period is won by the kid with the biggest heart.
Gold medals aren’t really made of gold. They’re made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts.
More enduringly than any other sport, wrestling teaches self-control and pride. Some have wrestled without great skill – none have wrestled without pride.
I’m a big believer in starting with high standards and raising them. We make progress only when we push ourselves to the highest level. If we don’t progress, we backslide into bad habits, laziness and poor attitude.
When I’d get tired and want to stop, I’d wonder what my next opponent was doing. I’d wonder if he was still working out. I’d tried to visualize him. When I could see him working, I’d start pushing myself. When I could see him in the shower, I’d push myself harder.
Raising your level of performance requires a proper mentality and meaning from within. This gives you the ability and drive to work on the things necessary to go to a higher level. When people ask me how to raise their level of performance, the first thing I ask is, How important is it to you?
Once you’ve wrestled, everything in life is easy.
A clean, hard-fought wrestling match is the most honest of athletic contests. There is no technological interventions, no teammates to blame, no panel of judges to bias the score. In wrestling, you compete or you quit. No alibis. I like that.
If you’re afraid to fail, you’ll never succeed.
Always remember the pain of defeat, and never let it happen again.