MACCLESFIELD-BORN sailor Ben Ainslie insists Qingdao’s difficult conditions won’t stand between him and a record third consecutive Olympic gold medal.
The 31-year-old suffered a tough break last weekend after being disqualified in the JP Morgan Asset Management Round the Island race last weekend, along with Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton for their part in a collision with another boat.
But already Ainslie’s thoughts are firmly focused on the China’s North-East shores, the sailing venue for the 2008 Olympics, which feature a yachtsman’s nightmare - strong currents and weak winds.
Qingdao has also been blighted by thick seaweed but Ainslie, who topped the podium in Sydney and Athens, is adamant he can bag a golden hat-trick when he goes in the Finn class.
He said: "I am looking forward to the challenge of sailing such difficult conditions – it makes it more exciting in a way.
"I think you will see some surprising results. It will increase the luck element but the top guys should still come out in the end.
"My personal performances have been very good in China so far – I won two test regattas, I am reasonably confident racing there and mastering those conditions.
"There is massive pressure that comes with the Olympic Games, both in terms of your own internal expectations and others from outside.
"A third gold would be pretty special but I am purely focused on my preparations, not my legacy."
Ainslie burst onto the scene with a silver medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and has already secured his place in the British sailing immortality.
And after Beijing, the two-time World Sailor of the Year aims to create another piece of history by helping Britain win the America’s Cup for the first time.
He added: "At the moment if you offered me another Olympic gold or lifting the America’s Cup, I’d go for the latter.
"My goals in sailing have always been the Olympics and the America’s Cup and I have already won gold at the Olympics.
"It is a much harder achievement to win the America’s Cup. You a part of a 100-strong team and just a small cog in the wheel.
"To make that whole team gel is far more difficult than just going out and winning a gold medal single-handedly. It is very hard to get your own impetus to count and also to get the best out of everyone else."
As for his role in the highest-profile incident of the weekend Ainslie said: "It was really unfortunate, personally I didn’t think it was our fault but that’s the way things go.
"The main thing was we were able to sail on and allow Lewis to see what sailing is all about."
