Ray Lewis - You have to play the game pissed off

"I never forget it. And if you never forget it, then your motivation never stops. Some people take certain things and they try to forget what that pain felt like. I don't. I take that same pain and I chase it every time I walk in a weight room. Any time I feel like I don't want to get up or whatever, it just clicks in."

Becoming somebody else on gameday is, to Lewis's mind, just part of the job. As he neatly puts it: "You got to play the game pissed off."

It is clear that Jordan has been another of Lewis's inspirations. During his speech in London, Lewis commands his audience to go out and read the basketball player's story – to note how greatness was not bestowed but earned through simple, unending, hard work. "Stop taking all these breaks," he implores. "Stop acting like this one's going to fall in your lap."