Shannon Miller Paul Hawthorne/Getty Images

Last week, SI writer Richard Deitsch interviewed Shannon Miller for the magazine's Q&A. The seven-time Olympic medalist is a second-year law student at Boston College and the host of Gymnastics USA with Shannon Miller on the CN8 network. Here are additional excerpts from the interview.

SI: So how does the most decorated American gymnast in history end up in law school?

Miller: I did my undergrad [at the University of Houston] in business marketing and entrepreneurship, and one of the last classes I took was business law. I was fascinated by how much I would need to know if I wanted to own my own business. [My intention] was never to be a practicing attorney. It was to gain that knowledge base.

SI: How tough is your course load?

Miller: I have four courses right now. Criminal Procedure, Intellectual Property, Patent Law and Constitutional Law. I go to class Monday through Thursday, and I only have one morning class on Thursday so that allows me to travel on the weekends for work. I have to miss class every once in a while, but I try to get there as much as possible. People put the fear of God into when you go to law school and how horrible it's going to be and it really hasn't been. It's been a great experience.

SI: What's the most fascinating legal case you've studied so far?

Miller: I'm not fascinated by one particular case but by knowledge that I had no idea was out there. Just getting to law school and realizing how much of it really pertains to every-day life, that's what fascinates me the most about law school.

SI: Are you planning to take the bar?

Miller: I haven't decided yet because I'm not sure what state I'll be living in when I'm finished.

SI: Bode Miller talked about Olympic-caliber partying at the Turin Olympics. Does that attitude bother you?

Miller: I have two views. My first one stems from my experiences at the Olympics. I always felt the partying could wait because I'd rather go home with a medal. That would be the best experience for me at an Olympics Games. The other view is that you want to enjoy it, especially if you know it's going to be your last one. The only problem is you are going over there to do a job and you are taking someone else's spot. I feel you should take it seriously. You should be respectful because you are putting on the red-white-and-blue and you are going out there to perform for your country.

SI: Last Saturday you raced in the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach Pro/Celebrity race. How did you finish?

Miller: I finished 13th out of 21 drivers. But I can now successfully drive a stick. That's a huge accomplishment.