I would never encourage my children to be athletes - first because my children are not athletes and second because there are so many people pushing to get to the top in sports that 100 people are crushed for each one who breaks through. This is unfortunate.

When a sports movie really works it gets you on all levels because the stakes are high. It's black and white. It's win or lose.

My tastes in all things lean towards the arty and boring. I like sports documentaries about Scrabble players bands that play quiet unassuming music and TV shows that win awards. In that way I am an elitist snob.

Read the news section of the newspaper and there is confusion and uncertainty a world buffeted by large forces people neither understand nor control. But turn to the sports section and it's all different.

Tennis is not like other sports where the coach is hired by an independent entity and that makes a huge difference in the dynamic.

Money was never the motivation. It never should be in sports.

I remember when I was growing up I always wore glasses and so if I was on-stage or just being able to move around playing sports I was never really able to because I had glasses holding me back. Wearing contacts has just been very helpful.

So if you want great sports Michigan's the place to be.

But as a practical matter Detroit's the sports city in the country.

I would venture to guess that if I was a construction worker... who requested a transfer to another department for the betterment of his family I would be commended for it. But because it's sports there's just so much passion added to it.

I'm a big sports fan. College football is my favorite.

We should confine booing in sports arenas to sport. I love a good boo as much as the next football fan.

When I was in Birmingham I used to go to a place called Redwood Field. I used to get there for a two o'clock game. Where can you make this kind of money playing sports? It was just a pleasure to go out and enjoy myself and get paid for it.

At ten I was playing against 18-year-old guys. At 15 I was playing professional ball with the Birmingham Black Barons so I really came very quickly in all sports.

While writing my first 90 books I was magazine editor publisher book publisher executive etc. so I was established in publishing. three of my seven or so books were biographies of sports stars and really opened doors for me in that area.

I believe God created sports for a good reason. It's recreation. It's something that we enjoy. It teaches us a lot as well... I believe God is a sports fan.

The sports page records people's accomplishments the front page usually records nothing but man's failures.