Skiff god goes Volvo

Triple 49er world champion and Nautor Challenge recruit Chris Nicholson spoke to Andy Rice

Nicholson is one of the most natural, instinctive sailors in the dinghy world so perhaps it is no surprise that he finds it strange sailing to numbers on a big boat. "You know why you are doing it, but it's not what I'm used to. Numbers only tell you what's going on at that moment, they don't tell you what's going to happen next."

He sees his inexperience as a bonus in some ways. "I think they've brought me in because perhaps I can offer fresh ideas from a different perspective."

Nicholson is certainly not used to losing. He has dominated virtually every class he has sailed, from winning the 505 worlds in the early 90s, ruling the 18 foot skiffs at the height of the professional scene in the mid-90s, to winning almost every 49er regatta that he participated in - up until the year before the Games. That's when the rest of the world, and particularly the Europeans, began to catch up.

Some say he peaked too early, that he should have kept some in reserve rather than laying his cards on the table so early in the Olympic cycle. Certainly he was the favourite to win Gold in Sydney, but he is suprisingly philosophical about his sixth place. "We hadn't done enough work on our light airs sailing, and it was a light airs regatta. There are no excuses, we just weren't at the same standard as the Finns [who won the Gold] in those conditions."

For Nicholson, the Volvo Ocean Race will be an opportunity to exorcise the demons from his 49er campaign and return to the Olympic fray with a fresh outlook in a year's time. "I'm sure I'll be back in something, although I haven't decided what yet. It could be the Tornado but I don't know if I could afford the development costs. Michael [Blackburn] is keen to get sailing now, but there's plenty of time after the end of the Volvo."