Angela Ruggiero Quotes

#1. When you look back from your Olympic experience, you never want to question whether you could have done more. The one thing you can control is your off-ice preparation.

Angela Ruggiero

#2. The more I've done work with the IOC the more I've come to realize I'm really excited about this, the work that I'm doing and the impact that I can have if I'm fully committed to it.

Angela Ruggiero

#3. I wish I could play the whole game and come back tomorrow.

Angela Ruggiero

#4. Right now, I'm standing behind the glass, and I guess that's a metaphor for how my life will be going forward.

Angela Ruggiero

#5. I have enough muscle already. Now I want to use it in more efficient ways.

Angela Ruggiero

#6. I'm not playing for lack of options. But this is such a fleeting thing. When I'm done, I'm never, ever going to be able to come back to it. I know Vancouver is my last go.

Angela Ruggiero

#7. There were no women's players I knew of. I didn't even know women's hockey existed.

Angela Ruggiero

#8. I'm getting more towards that point where I'm ready to kind of pass the torch on and see the next generation succeed behind me.

Angela Ruggiero

#9. I'm in the perfect position. It's a sports position and a political position where I can help better the lives of athletes around the world.

Angela Ruggiero

#10. I find that I've tried to become a better hockey player every year and not just hold on. At the same time, I've also made it a point to increase or grow in some other area of my life. If I were just playing hockey, I would probably be done with the sport.

Angela Ruggiero

#11. I look at myself, and how much I've gotten just because I play a sport well.

Angela Ruggiero

#12. It feels right. But it's emotional. Saying goodbye to anything you've done that long is hard.

Angela Ruggiero

#13. That's the awesome part. Little girls now have a chance to look up and see women playing soccer, basketball, softball and now hockey - and know they can win a gold medal, too.

Angela Ruggiero

#14. But inside of me I knew that the Olympics were still there. I was still young enough. I knew that once I transitioned out of hockey, it would be really hard to go back.

Angela Ruggiero

#15. I still love hockey. It's just I'm at a different stage of my life and I think I'm just ready to grow in other ways outside of just being a hockey player.

Angela Ruggiero

#16. I'm able to give a voice to the athletes around the world - use my degree for something other than the power play.

Angela Ruggiero

#17. In a way, by being fully committed to the Olympic movement globally, I'm better able to promote women's hockey and talk about women's hockey and put a face to women's hockey, to all the IOC members.

Angela Ruggiero

#18. I feel honored and privileged to have represented the USA program over the past 16 years. USA Hockey will always be a part of me and I will cherish the experiences and memories with this team.

Angela Ruggiero

#19. As a veteran, you're a little more poised on that mental side. But athletically, I didn't really think I could get better.

Angela Ruggiero

#20. It's not about, 'Let me play as long as I can so I don't have to grow up.' It's about, 'Let me play as long as I enjoy it,' and when it's time to step away, I can step away gracefully even if I'm still good enough to keep playing, because I'm ready for that next phase.

Angela Ruggiero