Put yourself out on a limb, sucka, like me! - young Cassius Clay to heavily favored thug Sonny Liston during the weigh in before Cassius wins his first title and changes his name to Muhammad Ali.

If my mind can conceive it, if my heart can believe it, then I can achieve it.

You could be the world's best garbage man, the world's best model; it don't matter what you do if you're the best.

I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'

Rest but never quit. Even the sun has a sinking spell each evening. But it always rises the next morning. At sunrise, every soul is born again.

Religion should not be allowed to come into Politics....Religion is merely a matter between man and God.

I do not believe in taking the right decision, I take a decision and make it right.

Don't count the days, make the days count.

There are two powers in the world; one is the sword and the other is the pen. There is a great competition and rivalry between the two. There is a third power stronger than both, that of the women.

Even the greatest was once a beginner. Don't be afraid to take that first step.

Champions aren't made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them-a desire, a dream, a vision.

Edinburgh is alive with words.

femelu could not understand this, her mother’s ability to tell herself stories about her reality that did not even resemble her reality

Untold millions are still untold.

The tires were scorching hot, in fact I burned my fingers on one.

You must not mistake lip-service and noise for bravery and service.

You count the hours you could have spent with your mother. It's a lifetime in itself.

Freedom and independence is my character.

Being a real writer means being able to do the work on a bad day.

Avoiding risk is not much of a goal...whether you crawl into a hole or walk a high wire, nobody gets out of here alive. We cannot grow without challenge.