Mikaela Shiffrin quotes:

I love traveling and seeing new things, learning the histories of different cultures. But I've always wanted to go to the Galapagos to see the giant turtles.

I do doubles on Monday and Thursday, take Wednesday off or do easy cardio, do doubles on Thursday and Friday, and the weekend I just get outside and get active - jog or bike ride, or play tennis with my mom.

Whether it's learning to hit a backhand in tennis, learning high school chemistry, or getting better at ski racing, I really believe with hard work and analytic preparation, you can skip a few steps and find the faster way.

I haven't had to make a decision between 'my brand' and money. Everybody seems to get what I'm going for: the healthy lifestyle, staying active, being young and youthful.

It rained a lot in New Hampshire, and when I skied, the snow was icy and hard, and the mountains were small.

If I hadn't come East as a kid, I might still be a World Cup racer today, but I wouldn't be the same World Cup racer.

My parents strapped a pair of plastic skis on my boots when I was two years old and sent me down our driveway in Vail. Of course, they were holding on to me the whole time, but that was my first experience 'skiing.'

I've learned some quick tricks about how to fix my hair so I can dash somewhere unexpected and still be O.K. when someone stops me to take a picture.

I was lucky enough that my parents knew about World Cup skiing, so since I was really little, we were watching World Cup winning runs.

People tell me an Olympic medal is a life-changing event. Except I don't even think about the medal unless someone asks about it.

I like it when hard work pays off.

I have never limited myself by focusing much on being a 'normal' teenager.

During the season, one of the most important things to eat is the carbs. Protein's really important, too, but it's the carbs that are important because I have to consistently refuel for the next day.

I just have tried to adapt to the constant changes that happen all the time in my schedule and try and find any sort of mini-predictability and balance within my very unpredictable life.

A perfect day for me would just be a day that goes the way I plan.

People watch the Olympics because they want to believe in heroes; I know I did.

Dream big, but don't be upset if it doesn't happen.

It's like a puzzle or a painting or music. When I ski, it's like a song. I can hear the rhythm in my head, and when I start to ski that rhythm and I start to really link my turns together, all of a sudden there's so much flow and power that I just can't help but feel amazing. That's where the joy comes from.

I get this adrenaline rush from just going down the course and feeling like I made a really great turn and I'm going to do it again and again and again. That feeling can't be replaced, and that's the feeling I'm striving to get every time I go out there.

I don't really have time or interest in doing a lot of the crazy things that some of my teenage peers do, mostly because I have such a hectic life that I don't need to add to that chaos by creating my own teenage drama like a lot of teenagers do.

I remember skiing being a family recreational thing.

One of the biggest misconceptions is that carbs are bad. It's a fad right now. Full disclosure: I'm sponsored by Barilla. But I've always been free about saying I love carbs, including pasta, in moderation.

I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it is my first Olympics. To me, it's my thousandth.

I just - I fell in love with the sport when I started to ski gates. Once I was allowed to start training gates around 6 years old, then I really fell in love with it.

I'm not really seeing pressure as a negative.

Out on the hill under the helmet, nobody sees your face or hair, but then you take it off, and they do - that's the part I'm nervous about.

My dream job has always been to be a ski racer.

When I was 3 years old, I thought I was very good at skiing.

I may have become a world champion quicker than most, but people should look at me and realise there are all kinds of ways to get where you want to go. Because we didn't plan it. We just did it.

I think its good to stimulate your mind.

You can create your own miracle, but you do it by never looking past all the little steps along the way.