Being a decathlete is like having ten girlfriends. You have to love them all, and you can't afford losing one.

He won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award the same year. Robert Chalmers described him as "the greatest all-round athlete this country [United Kingdom] has ever produced. Afterwards he famously sent a message to friends back home via a TV interview showing his medal and saying "I've got the Big G boys - the Big G!"
Sometimes Thompson's behaviour caused offence not least when he refused to carry the English flag at the opening ceremony of the 1982 Commonwealth Games claiming that the effort required participating in the four-and-a-half hour ceremony would reduce his chances of winning his event.

Robert Chalmers described him as "the greatest all-round athlete this country [United Kingdom] has ever produced. He won the decathlon gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984 and broke the world record for the event four times. With four world records two Olympic gold medals three Commonwealth titles and wins in the World and European Championships Thompson is considered by many to be one of the greatest decathletes of all time (along with Bob Mathias and Dan O'Brien).