48 Quotes by Jessica Ennis

It’s quite funny in that I once won Rear of the Year at my school! I was about 17 in the sixth form and we used to have an end of year celebration and give out different awards. I even got a little trophy!

My idea of beauty is somebody that doesn’t have to try too much, someone who is effortless and fresh.

It’s really important for me to look good before a race. I definitely think if I feel I look good, it makes me feel more confident.

Things have changed so much, with Facebook and Twitter. Everyone is so much more accessible these days: no British athlete has ever experienced what we are experiencing now. It’s such a unique situation with the home Olympics.

I’m proud of the way I’ve dealt with setbacks. It’s hard when you feel down and you think, ‘Why is the world doing this to me?’ But you have to pick yourself up again. That’s what makes you a better athlete.

One minute you’re a developing athlete trying to get to the top, then the next minute you do well and win a medal somewhere, and then it’s all foisted on you. You never know when it’s going to happen. You don’t think about the media side of things when you’re a young athlete trying to do well.

Training is full-on. Some days I really don’t want to get out of bed and hit that track again. Sunday and Monday morning sessions are always horrible. But who really looks forward to going to work on a Monday morning?

I just love thinking about what makes people tick.

People think the gold medal is yours and they say you’re going to win – but they have no idea how hard it is. People aren’t doing it negatively – they’re mostly lovely and they really do want you to win – but they don’t understand the difficulty and intensity of competition.