To go to hospitals and see people fight and overcome cystic fibrosis or cancer or any number of illnesses is to see courage that is humbling. And athletes constantly need to be humbled.

Athletes are very cool to me.

Acting is sort of an extension of childhood. You get to play all of these roles and have so much fun. Playing an athlete would be so cool. Or where you get to shoot guns ride horses. I wouldn't turn down any of that.

When first starting to work with someone you try to get them in the same mindset that you were in when you were successful and I realized the best thing you can ever do is realize that they are not you. They have a different persona and mindset and you have to figure out what works best within your communication with that athlete.

A revised schedule is to business what a new season is to an athlete or a new canvas to an artist.

When you put the interest of a kid on money instead of heart then you're destroying the beauty of our lives and our thought process which should be about how much responsibilities you carry as an athlete and a citizen.

I think exercise tests us in so many ways our skills our hearts our ability to bounce back after setbacks. This is the inner beauty of sports and competition and it can serve us all well as adult athletes.

You'd like more people to recognise what you do is special. But I take the attitude that the best thing I can do for my sport is to be the best at it. The best way people will come to recognise that track and field is a great sport is to see athletes excelling at it. Which is what I intend to do.

I do like athletes as they have amazing self-discipline.

The Madden NFL franchise holds a special place in popular culture and the cover is a coveted position for players all over the league. I'm honored to be the first cover athlete chosen by Madden NFL fans and it's a great way to cap off an amazing year for the Saints and the city of New Orleans.

I tell you it was kind of two-fold. I fortunately had a lot of support. My coach was amazing - he told me to focus on being prepared and that is what I did. Every athlete is nervous - any athlete who tells you they're not nervous isn't telling you the truth. I was as prepared as I could be.

The things that people do now in sports you can't even believe. These are complete total athletes. To see what human beings can do in the highest level is amazing.

The athlete of today is not an athlete alone. He's the center of a team - doctors scientists coaches agents and so on.