“The important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part; the essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well” – Baron Pierre de Coubertin (founder of the modern Olympic movement)
Let’s be honest – the longer it stretches into the winter months, the harder it can be to stay motivated. While everyone claims they are going to turn things around come New Years, all too often winter hibernation seems to kick in instead. Between holiday stresses, tempting treats at every corner, and freezing temperatures that make you want to cuddle up with a cup of hot chocolate and binge-watch Stranger Things, it can be hard to accomplish even a little of what you wanted to. Still, there are some people who absolutely thrive during winter. Of all these winter warriors, few emulate the kind of goals we all aspire to as much as the elite athletes that compete in the Winter Olympics.
With the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics coming up in just a few months in Italy, we thought it would would be good to revisit some of the best quotes from Winter Olympians to help you stay inspired. As things start to slow down in the first few weeks of the New Year, it’s important to keep that fire burning underneath you. Whether you’re trying to get in shape, tidy up your finances, nail a new trick, or just be a kinder person – you’ll find something here to help motivate you on your path.
These Olympians didn’t get to where they are without being able to share a tip or two, that’s for sure. From ice skating to ice hockey, from gold medalists to last-place finishers, all these athletes have reached the pinnacle of their sports and careers through determination, discipline, and sheer force of will. I’m sure one of these Winter Olympic quotes is sure to resonate with you. Here are the 21 quotes from Winter Olympians that we think will help keep you inspired this winter:
1) “Failure is inevitable – and it’s the people that keep trying who become successful.” – Mirai Nagasu (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Figure Skating
Number of Appearances: 2
Mirai Nagasu made history at just her second Olympic debut in 2018 at the PeyongChang Winter Olympics games when she became the first American woman to land a triple axel at the Olympics. She accomplished this stunning feat during the women’s team event which she competed in as well as women’s singles. Mirai Nagasu officially retired from elite competition in 2020 and she is not expected to compete in 2026.
2) “My mission is to use sport as a force for unity.” – Gu Ailing (China)
Winter Olympic Event: Freestyle Skiing
Number of Appearances: 1
3) “If you dream and allow yourself to dream, you can do anything.” – Clara Hughes (Canada)
Winter Olympic Event: Speed Skating
Number of Appearances: 3
4) “The lesson you learn is that it doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is believing in yourself, kicking out of the start gate, and leaving everything else behind.” – Julia Mancuso (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Alpine Skiing
Number of Appearances: 3
5) “I’ve decided to make my main priority for the next two years not playing the violin, but training for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.” – Vanessa Mae (Thailand)
Winter Olympic Event: Alpine Skiing
Number of Appearances: 1
Vanessa Mae is truly an example of what you can accomplish when you put your mind to something. Unlike most of the people on this list, Vanessa Mae’s main profession is not an athlete – but a musician. Mae began her career as a violinist at just the age of 5 showing signs of a natural-born child prodigy and becoming the youngest student ever to study violin at the Royal 
College of Music in London. By her teens she had already recorded works by great classical composers like Beethoven, Bach, and Tchaikovsky.
By the mid-90’s, her career had taken an international turn and she sold tens of millions of albums worldwide with her unique blend of classical, pop, and techno influences becoming the most commercially successful violinist of the late 20th and early 21st centuries inspiring future pop-violin acts around the world such as Lindsey Sterling and David Garrett. After this illustrious music career, Vanessa Mae stunned the world in 2012 by announcing that she would take a break from her musical career to train to become Thailand’s first Olympic alpine skier. A goal she would accomplish by competing at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
What Place did Vanessa Mae get in the Winter Olympics? Vanessa Mae ended up placing 67th in the giant slalom at Sochi. While she may not have gotten a medal, she proved that you can accomplish anything you put your mind to with enough grit and determination. In the process she became an interdisciplinary legend and the first alpine skier to represent her home country of Thailand. And her Winter Olympic quotes will go on to inspire generations of athletes and musicians alike. Not a bad legacy at all. Listen to some of her greatest hits by checking out the Best of Vanessa-Mae Album here.
6) “The first thing is to love your sport. Never do it to please someone else. It has to be yours.” – Peggy Fleming (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Figure Skating
Number of Appearances: 1
7) “I ceased to be nervous the moment I stepped onto the sheet.” – Fan Suyuan (China)
Winter Olympic Event: Alpine Skiing
Number of Appearances: 1
8) “Never Try to imitate anyone else. Follow your own path, find something new, something that is yours, and stick with it.” – Ricco Groß (Germany)
Winter Olympic Event: Biathlon
Number of Appearances: 5
Ricco Groß is one of the most visible Winter Olympic athletes appearing at 5 different Winter Olympic games for Germany and becoming one of the most notable and consistent biathlon competitors of all time. Which Olympic Games did Ricco Groß compete in? Groß was a corner stone of the German biathlon team for over a decade competing in 1992 (France), 1994 (Norway), 1998 (Japan), 2002 (United States), and 2006 (Italy). After retiring from being a competitor himself, he would also go on to serve as the head coach the German Men’s Biathlon team for a number of years as well as pick up international coaching roles in Russia and Austria.
9) “My experience at the 1992 Winter Olympics was my fulfillment of dreaming the impossible dream.” – Kristi Yamaguchi (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Figure Skating
Number of Appearances: 1
10) “A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.” – Wayne Gretzky (Canada)
Winter Olympic Event: Ice Hockey
Number of Appearances:1
11) “I’ve learned to win for myself, not for other people.” – Gu
Ailing (China)
Winter Olympic Event: Freestyle Skiing
Number of Appearances: 1
12) “Success is always an easier motivator, because you want more of it. But I’ve also been motivated by failure. Had I medaled in London, I don’t think I would be one of the few that have gone to a Summer and Winter. I would have been content with that medal. Instead, I used that failure to go to the Winter Olympics. I always tell people that failure can be one of your biggest motivators if you have an attitude adjustment about it.” – Lolo Jones (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Bobsleigh
Number of Appearances: 1
Did Lolo Jones compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympics? Yes, Lolo Jones competed in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. The many successes of the various athletes on this list can be obviously inspiring; however, I think it is Jones’ view of her “failures” that are particularly powerful. Jones was primarily a track and field athlete who competed in two separate Summer Olympic games in both track and field hurdles. After not landing a medal at the 2012 London Olympics, she decided to try again two years later at the Winter Olympics. This led to her eventually joining the women’s two-woman bobsled at Sochi and finishing 11th. Instead of taking a loss lying down, Jones’ determination after failure led her to become of the rare few athletes to have competed in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. A lesson we can all use.
13) “I didn’t lose the gold, I won the silver.” – Michelle Kwan (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Figure Skating
Number of Appearances: 2
14) “I think you need to dream big, and then everything is possible. In sport, you can never give up and have to fight till the end. I am here, and I won at the Olympic games. This is something that is huge for me, my country, my family, and my team. We are really happy and proud.” – Petra Vlhova (Slovakia)
Winter Olympic Sport: Alpine Skiing
Number of Appearances: 2
15) “Figure Skating is a mixture of art and sport.” – Katarina Witt (East Germany)
Winter Olympic Event: Figure Skating
Number of Appearances: 2
16) “If one little girl who looks like me picks up a winter sport because she sees me, that’s all anybody could ever ask for.” – Elana Meyers (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Bobsleigh
Number of Appearances: 4
Are your kids looking to get their own sledding start this winter? Get them outdoors with something they love and check out this Snow Racer Ski Sled to inspire them to get outside and start on their own Winter Olympic journey!
17) “I thought the dream was up here, and it’s here now. Now I see the dream in front of me that I can actually reach.” Jan Scherrer (Switzerland)
Winter Olympic Event: Snowboarding
Number of Appearances: 2
18) “It all paid off! I’ve dreamt about this moment for years and years and years! I’m so happy to have the home crowd here backing me.” – Gu Ailing (China)
Winter Olympic Event: Freestyle Skiing
Number of Appearances: 1
Gu Ailing (also known as Eileen Gu in the United States) is a shining example of perseverance. She took years and years of practice and discipline and parlayed it into one of the most standout Olympic performances of all time. How many medals did Gu Ailing win at her first Olympics? Gu stunned international audiences by winning 3 medals in total at her Winter Olympics debut. She won two gold medals on the Big Air and Halfpipe as well as a silver medal at the Slopestyle event. Her incredible performance on home turf at her first Olympics led her to being one of the most talked about athletes of 2022 and brought great pride to everyone in her home country of China. Is Gu Ailing competing in the 2026 Olympics? Yes, Gu Ailing is expected to compete in the 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympic Games in Italy. So it looks like we will be getting Winter Olympics quotes from her for years to come!
19) “I didn’t set out to beat the world; I just set out to do my absolute best.” – Shaun White (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Snowboarding
Number of Appearances: 5
20) “One thing guys have to remember is consistency… you can’t make up for three years of eating poorly in just one workout.” – Apolo Anton Ohno (United States)
Winter Olympic Event: Speed Skating
Number of Appearances: 3
21) “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky (Canada)
Winter Olympic Event: Ice Hockey
Number of Appearances: 1
Of all the great quotes from Winter Olympians out there, we had to end it on one of the most iconic and recognizable of 
all. Often attributed to a mid-level paper manager named Michael Scott (due to a certain hit TV show), this quote from Wayne Gretzky never fails to hit home. At the end of the day, it’s one of the most recognizable quotes in the world for a reason – there’s some truth in it. No matter what you are trying to do, the most important part is that you get up off the coach and take the first step.
So whatever your goals are this year, make sure you have to drive and the discipline to absolutely knock them out of the park! Remember the hardest part is getting started and then it’s all about consistency. Hopefully some of these quotes from Winter Olympic athletes will have helped inspire you on whatever journey you’re embarking on. Ultimately, it’s all up to you. You got this. Happy New Years!
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