I learned to skate in our garage. We lived in the country in Florida, it was sort of farmish, and there was no cement anywhere else. Vert skating was the kind of skating that was done in pools, where you could get airborne and be weightless. The other style, which is what I did, was called free style, which was tricks you could do on flat ground. Rodney Mullen
And the fact that I liked to show off and be the center of attention really lends itself to figure skating very well. Scott Hamilton
But I never really thought that I would be extraordinarily successful at skating, it's just something that happened, you know. Scott Hamilton
I just try to touch people's hearts in a way through skating, so they're not just witnessing a performance, they're feeling a performance and they're a part of it. Scott Hamilton
I love skating and sparkling and flying around the ice, and people clap for you. It's an amazing feeling. Johnny Weir
I never ever wanted to change my sport... Figure skating was my outlet, it was my breath, it was how I could live and transmit everything I was feeling and everything I had worked for and given up and all these sacrifices I'd made throughout the years. It was how I could make them all worth it. Johnny Weir
I started skating and I kind of liked it because I could run circles around the guys that wouldn't pick me to play baseball. Scott Hamilton
I've never been invited to do 'Stars on Ice' before, which is the only figure skating tour in the U.S., and it's disappointing that I can't perform for my American fans... all because I'm not 'family friendly' enough. Johnny Weir
Male figure skating is different than female figure skating; we're not America's sweetheart. Scott Hamilton
That's what amateur skating is about, technical expertise, and it should always stay that way. Brian Boitano
What was really funny is that as I got older all those guys who called me a sissy in junior high school wanted me to be their best friend because they wanted to meet all the girls that I knew in figure skating. Scott Hamilton
When the going got tough, I really had to draw on many of the same competitive instincts I did when I was skating. I really had to put my head down and stay positive. I had to fight. Peggy Fleming
Without strength and courage it's really hard to perform at the highest levels of international figure skating, because you're alone on the ice and you only have seven minutes over two nights to prove yourself. Scott Hamilton
'Thrasher' magazine's Skater of the Year is clearly my No. 1 goal. The only way I get that is skating. Other than that, I haven't set that many outrageous goals. If I got Skater of the Year ,that would just really add to it all and make me feel really good. Whether it's this year, next year or five years from now, that is my goal. Ryan Sheckler