When you're growing up, you realize you've got a lot of heavy things on your shoulders.

See, when I went to the Olympics in '76, the gymnastics people knew that I was good, but everybody else, after I won, everybody was like, 'Where's she coming from? Who is she? What is Romania?'

We developed a system in Romania that was very successfully continued for a number of years, but I don't know if it was because of some conflict in the organisation or whether there was government interference... but somehow, they have forgotten the importance of raising gymnasts to be ready for every Olympics.

Near the end of my career, I saw things that didn't make too much sense to me when I was a kid.

One way to express choice is through the market. Well-functioning markets provide choices and, ultimately, the ability to express one's pursuit for happiness.

You have something unique that no one else has - your life experience. That's the power of you.

I was brought up on a farm, and I've learned that every opportunity that I've had in my life has come from hard work and persistence.

I think that my general feeling about the United States is that democracy works, and I've believed that my whole life, and my experience as a businessperson for 30 years was if you ignore the sound and fury, American democracy works if you give it enough time.