Quotes from Victoria Pendleton

I was always cycling for my dad. Then the coaches got bigger, and my results got better. Suddenly, the responsibility grows, and I'm doing it for somebody else, I'm doing it for a programme; I'm doing it for the country. I'm doing it for, like, everybody.

I just want to prove that I am really good at something. And I haven't quite done that yet - at least not to myself. I know I could ride so much better, with more ease, with more finesse. I feel I'm nowhere near as good as I should be.

You have to be realistic. I'd love to be more famous, have lots of people supporting me, people knowing my name, but I need a tennis racket or a golf club or to play football. Being a female, I don't stand a chance.

The men couldn't understand how I could be so successful and so insecure at the same time - because it doesn't really exist in the same way in the male psyche.

We are all totally committed as elite athletes. To think that pushing people around and bullying them is the best way to get results out of them is just ludicrous.

I've always been very fond of animals.

I'm not one for going out on the town on Friday night, as I've never been a big drinker, so I like getting the rubbish jobs out of the way so we can enjoy our free time.

I went to Australia and did a three day hike with my fiance through the wilderness, which was nice.

People may think I'm crazy, but one of the ways I like to wind down my Friday is to get some of our household chores done, whether it's cleaning or doing a big food shop, so the house is all nice for the weekend.

Winning the gold medal should have been the happiest day of my entire life, and it just wasn't. It felt like the saddest day of my life. Everyone was so angry with us, that Scott and I had fallen in love, because it was so unprofessional, and we were a disgrace and had betrayed everybody.

I love watching Crufts on the television, especially the agility tests; I find them very impressive.

I've lost a lot more races than I've ever won... it's all part of the journey, really.

Oh, I am an angel, though sometimes I wish I was more of a devil.

Anyone that has been lucky enough to go to the races and witness the magnificent spectacle of a competitive race will know how people like me can instantly fall in love with the power and beauty of race horses in full gallop.

I used to have a rant all the time when things went wrong, at everybody around me, because you just have to get the frustration out.

It's a rare and special feeling to ride a racehorse.

We've all said, 'No, no, I couldn't do that... ' But actually, you could if you just went, 'You know what? I will... and I shall.' Once you realise that, it's quite wonderful.

I used to wear miniskirts with my GB top, and sparkly sandals, and the boys would be like: 'Oh my gosh, this girl cannot be serious.'

I think women are by nature competitive - secretly, privately within their own selves, on lots of different levels, on the way they look, perform.

Even though I've won numerous titles and an Olympic gold medal, there are still so many faults in my performance that I can honestly hardly bear to watch the videos back.

I go round and round in circles, really, really fast, on a big wooden bowl.

There's footage of me bouncing around, all uncoordinated, trying to work out how on earth you're supposed to do a rising trot on a really extravagant moving eventing horse.

I thrive on having support around me, even if they are not actively doing something. I feel happier, more confident.

It would be great to be recognised for my achievements, but Sports Personality isn't about that.