"I like being in the workforce; it keeps me grounded."

"I think the greatest amount of pressure is the pressure I place on myself. So in a way I chose to be alone."

"I'm so lucky. I have such a great support system. All I have to do is run."

"I don't have a lot of regrets in my life."

"This occasion is personally very meaningful and I hope to visit Korea again if I have the chance."

"People could see in me who I am now, an Olympic champ, the best in the world."

"Money makes life easier but I don't want to be rich, not at all."

"With Alexander's cancer, I was definitely brought to my knees for the first time because of the fear factor."

"I feel like I've reached an age where I can relax a little bit with the knowledge of what I've been through, take all that experience and use it. I love the challenge of trying to get back to where I've been, and beyond it."

"Australians are a fantastic bunch of people but the attention can be overwhelming for someone like me."

"I made my first Australian senior team when I was 16, first Olympics when I was 19, and I retired. I'm 32, I retired four years ago, so a good third of my life or nearly a third of my life has been all about running."

"I definitely do things on my terms, it may not seem that way but I actually do."

"I was going to shave it. It went in two parts. I got a bob first but it kept falling all over my face. Then it was off, short. The main reason it was long was because my mother cut it short when I was little and I was trying to make up for that."

"I'm not a marriage expert, quite clearly."

"I was running since I was 10. Since grade one at school people looked at me and thought, oh gosh she can really run, she's a natural."

"Peace, unity and harmony!"

"I have a friend who, if she has a bad hair day, it affects her whole mood because it is part of her sexuality, her confidence. I don't have that problem any more."

"You got to try and reach for the stars or try and achieve the unreachable."

"I don't like people looking at me; I hate the attention."

"I make no apologies."

"I was always surrounded by expectation from the very first race I ran as a 5-year-old."

"I have time to breathe, time to be myself more often, I am a lot more relaxed and less guarded."

"My last real race was at the Olympics in Sydney in 2000."

"I want to keep my private life private."

"I like looking feminine and I enjoy being a role model. I enjoy being a woman. It all comes down to having the confidence to be who you are."

"I lie around the floor with my cats Billy and Jazz or watch DVDs with my best friends."