Good feelings

Stuart Bithell won silver at London 2012. He aims to go one better at the Tokyo Olympics, but he’s up against some tough competition

- Stuart Bithell

Stuart Bithell laughs quietly at the suggestion that he is seen as one of Team GB’s most naturally gifted sailors, that he is one of those rare talents who quite simply makes boats go faster. “I try,” he replies with a chuckle.

Bithell, 33, originally from Rochdale in Manchester, will crew the 49er at the Tokyo Olympics next summer, with helm Dylan Fletcher. The two were rivals for years and Fletcher’s team beat Bithell’s to the sole British place at the Rio Games four years ago. After the Games, he and Bithell were competing against each other in a Moth regatta when they “had a lightbulb moment” and decided to pool their talents. Their first year saw them win the European and World championships and their form has continued. The last 12 months, however, has seen the ominous return to the class of Blair Tuke and Peter Burling, who won gold at Rio and then went onto win the America’s Cup in Bermuda for New Zealand.

Bithell acknowledges the pair are “super tough competition” and says: “We’re up against perhaps the most successful sailing team in the world – they are formidable together. I like to put a positive spin on things and say it creates an opportunity for us to go out and beat the best team in the world. We’ve got a good programme and we’re part of a brilliant team, not just the British Sailing Team but also TeamGB. We’ll be going out there ensuring we’re in a position to put in our best performance and we genuinely believe that if we do that we are capable of winning.”