Quotes

Paul on the Olympics, on skating, on life, on G&G, on his programs, and what others say

On the Olympics

When asked if he'd ever dreamed of winning an Olympic medal: "Yeah, but I always woke up!"
When asked at the 92 Olympics if he wore his silver medal around: "Nooo... that's a goon move." ^_^
“I was the guy who should have been left at home and forgotten about. Albertville was really a watershed.”
On winning silver rather than gold: "How much more of a Cinderella story do you want?" and "My silver WAS my gold."
"In the 1992 Olympics, I felt God's pleasure."
"No one ever took my picture before and there were never crowds asking for autographs. There were times when I thought of giving up. But now I am thrilled I kept at it. No matter what I wind up doing with my life, this medal will make a big difference."

On skating

About the current direction of figure skating: "I tried three times to do a quad and decided that it was probably going to lead me to injury. Part of skating is knowing your strengths."
On retiring in 1998 and going to school: "I went from skating in a different town every other day, to sitting in the same seat, morning until night, for a semester. For me, that was the only way to do it, to have an abrupt end and throw myself into another intense experience."
Regarding Battle of the Sexes (1996): "I performed the Doors and a not-so-good Mission: Impossible. Also, the longest spin of my career (and the most dizzying - which took place minutes before the Mission: Impossible number) in a "spin-off" with Liz Manley."

On life in general

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms."
What words best describe you: "Intense, sensitive, busy, always thinking."
"The chief end of man is to love God and enjoy him forever."
When asked if he visits fan websites: "Yes. It can be overwhelming. It's very flattering."

On Gordeeva & Grinkov

"Every time they stepped on the ice, there was this collective sigh because it was so perfect."
"She's so young and strong - and their love was so powerful - she reminds me of Juliet."
"You could see the power that they had between them when they skated. Their eyes never left each other during the whole performance. No one else does that in pairs skating. It can be very distracting, looking into someone else's eyes while you're skating, but it never was for them. It was natural. You could just see how much they loved each other. You would watch them and just wish you had that sort of relationship with someone. We all wish we could find that kind of feeling, that perfect nuclear life. So few people actually do."
On the day Sergei died: "There was just nothing you could do except wait for the EMTs. I rubbed Katia's back, and with my other hand I just touched Sergei's skate. He was lifeless."
"Everyone took this so hard. We'd all done this tour for a number of years. We were a family. This was where we came, Lake Placid, every year for Thanksgiving. We all just stared out at the lake."

On his programs (from Blades on Ice July/Aug '98)

Carmina Burana: "The monks wrote this in the Middle AGes during the plague. It deals ith superstition and the people not understanding their fate... they explained it as a wheel of fortuna controlled by the moon that determined their fate... The program was about trying to release yourself from this control. On this costume is a partial wheel of fortune, not a fan as some people thought."
The Untouchables: "It is not just a shoot-em-up gangster movie. Elliott Ness was the embodiment of goodness,a guy everyone looked up to for busting the mob. I loved playing that kind of unmitigated hero who was also a good guy, a family man."
Schindler's List: "Mary and I worked on this one more than any other program. The movie was incredibly powerful. We wanted it to reach people. We wanted to tell the story and for people to feel it was scary, to remember what it was about. We also wanted them to hope for a better future and learn from the Holocaust. I did get some criticism on the Internet for doing this number, but I think it was an important one."
Apollo 13: "It started out being about the astronauts and that mission and the experience for the TV generation of going through their ordeal alongside of them... As the season evolved, it took on another meaning with the death of Sergei Grinkov. I experienced what it was like to lose someone. The most memorable time for me was skating this for the Sergei tribute show. It was hard but at the same time it was really heartwarming."
Mission: Impossible: "The Mission Impossible was a fun number, not a deep one. It was originally done for Nancy's Halloween show."
On the Waterfront: "It's such an incredible score. ... It is a powerful piece of music that combines modern music and jazz; it is an incredible song."
Go the Distance: I chose this for my final season and was really thinking about perserverance. I was thinking also about going toward our eternal goal. There is a line in the song, 'I will plan my way, every mile will be worth my while when I go the distance. I will be right where I belong.' I think of those words every night. I think of the next step isn't just skating, it is really the distance to something else now... towards my eternal goal."
Mary Scotvold: "I feel a trust with Mary and we understand one another. We have a deeper connection than anyone else besides my parents."

Other people talking about Paul

Scott Hamilton: "Every Olympic performance impacts you for the rest of your life, and this Olympic performance will definitely impact Paul Wylie in the most positive way." (as Paul was finishing up his 92 Olympic long program)

Dialogues