Claressa Shields Quotes

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Claressa Shields

Profession : Athlete

Birth : March 17, 1995

I be thinking sometimes, maybe I'm just too hard on people. Maybe I want too much. But no, I don't. All my granny did was cook for me, tell me that she love me, gave me hugs every now and then.

Claressa Shields

The first punch I learned was the jab. Second, the cross punch; third, the hook - after that, all the combinations and how to move my head and feet. It took me just two months to be ready to get in the ring!

Claressa Shields

I felt abandoned at a young age. That's where most of my anger came from, I guess.

Claressa Shields

I trained my whole life for the Olympics. I didn't have a childhood, I really couldn't go to the beach with my friends. Couldn't go to parties. Just training, training, training.

Claressa Shields

At the Olympics, for those eight minutes of each fight, all that attention was on me. Either the crowd is with you or against you.

Claressa Shields

I have a healthy respect. The fact that I get ready for each opponent shows my respect.

Claressa Shields

But now in open division, I get to fight a lot more. I actually like that.

Claressa Shields

You got to adjust to how your life is.

Claressa Shields

I grew up on North Saginaw, the north side of Flint, which is considered the worst part and I was able to make it; I was able to make it by just making smart decisions from a very young age.

Claressa Shields

I sign a lot of autographs and take a lot of pictures. That's why I've always got to keep my hair done now.

Claressa Shields

I consider my diet more of a life plan in general, and I have my days where I'll splurge, but I stay disciplined.

Claressa Shields

I take the toughest challenges and fight against the best women. With that attitude, I will always be doing something big. I'm light-years ahead of my time.

Claressa Shields

Growing up in Flint, Michigan, I saw so many kids from my school end up in jail or unemployed, and gangs would hang out and cause trouble in my neighborhood. I had to learn how to protect myself, because it didn't feel like anyone else was protecting me.

Claressa Shields

Kids in Flint don't even know that you can write to express your feelings and go to the gym and work out, you can run, you can do whatever you love to help relieve stress.

Claressa Shields

Flint is not a hopeless city and I mean that.

Claressa Shields

I was angry because I see other kids with things that I wanted: they had good parents, they had clothes, they always had food and extra money, and I wasn't one of those kids.

Claressa Shields

I tell all kids and the girls growing up that you control your own life, you control your destiny - not where you're born, not who your parents are.

Claressa Shields

I train like an animal in the ring. There's nobody that can beat me because I train hard for everybody.

Claressa Shields

My dad would tell me stories about when he was an underground fighter. One day when I was 11, he told me he wished he had a son who could have been a real boxer.

Claressa Shields

Boxing gave me self-confidence that I didn't have growing up. When I was young, I was super quiet and I didn't trust anybody. I didn't like having friends.

Claressa Shields