“Who else, when we stepped to the line in Torino, was going to be so mentally tough? Who else would have proven to himself that he could do anything he set out to do? In a sport that was always one tick away from being entirely out of control, who else would have done everything he could to take charge of the things he could-and should- control to put himself in position to excel?”

“Passion is the spark for everything. By itself, passion is never enough. Just like talent is never enough. But it's your fire starter.Without passion, you won't do something 100 percent. That's the bottom line.And what's the point of doing something if you're not doing it 100 percent?”

“Skating was a gift given to me, and it's a sport I love. I go out there every single day and there isn't a day I don't want to be out there”

“If I have given my all and still do not win, I haven't lost. Others might remember winning or losing; I remember the journey.”

“There was only one thing the perfume could not do. It could not turn him into a person who could love and be loved like everyone else. So, to hell with it he thought. To hell with the world. With the perfume. With himself”

“Sneak out." He shrugged, as if that should have been a no-brainer. But that was easy for him to say. He was dead. What else could they do to him, take away his birthday?”

“He dared to do what men and women don't even dare to think. And look what he's done already: he's torn open the sky, he's opened the way to another world. Who else has ever done that? Who else could think of it?”