How are you feeling now we're so close to this year's Olympic games in Beijing? I'm very excited but it's a real cocktail of emotions. Obviously there are nerves but that's not a problem as long as you use them positively as motivation. If you weren't nervous, you wouldn't be ready.
What did it feel like winning gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens? I can't remember the exact moment I realised we'd won. Everyone always asks at what point we knew because it was such a close run thing. Immediately after we found out we'd won we just rowed up and down in front of the crowd and I tried to tell myself to remember this moment. Getting the medal was so intense but it's not until the weeks and months afterwards that you can get your head around it.
How determined are you to win a medal again this year? Obviously I want to win gold. I could have walked away at the top of my game after the last Olympics so I know I've taken a big risk by trying again. But I still think I can be better. I'm very motivated.
Did losing in the 2007 World Championships knock your confidence? No. It was a shock and gut-wrenching to lose but, as hard as it was, it didn't mean we had to panic. With 10 months to go to the Olympics from that race we've had time to analyse what went wrong.
Walk us through an average day's training. We start at 7.30am on the water after a first breakfast. We train for about an hour and three quarters and do about 20-22km. Then it's time for a second breakfast and a bit of a rest. By 11.30am I'll be in the gym for an hour and a half doing mostly weights. That's followed by lunch and a slightly longer rest. In the afternoon it's indoor rowing, finishing off at about 4pm. I do this seven days a week with the momentum building up over the four year cycle. We also do several training camps a year, the cross country skiing one is really tough.
Is rowing just about the winning? Obviously it's a massive part of it. If you lose a race like we did last summer it feels like the end of the world, so I'd say it's probably 99%. But it's not everything. I wouldn't do it if I didn't love it. I enjoy the training and I love challenging myself. I think I'm incredibly lucky to be doing something I'm so passionate about.
What's the worst thing about rowing? Training on the weekends. I have Christmas Day off, but on Boxing Day I have to get the rowing machine out. We get three weeks' holiday a year but apart from that I never have two days off in a row. There's not much freedom but it's what I'm used to.
And the best thing? Winning. But also the little things along the way - beating a personal best or rowing in the morning sunshine when the water's dead flat.
How important is it to be really bonded with the rest of your boat? We go through such an intense, powerful experience together, our coach calls it 'blind understanding'. All your dreams are in their hands and vice versa. It's a relationship with really big responsibilities. You have to trust them one hundred percent.
What qualities does it take to make a truly great athlete? First you've got to have a very clear focus or goal. Secondly, you need to allow that focus to trickle down into every part of your life. You've got to be an Olympic rower 24/7. Then, at the end of all that, you've got to be able to perform on the day.
I hear you drive a Touareg? I've had one for about a year. I'd never had a four wheel drive before and it's really exciting to have such an awesome car.
What's the best thing about your Touareg? The sat-nav is a god-send. I'm terrible with directions and I used to find it impossible to find places. I don't know how I got anywhere without it. Better than that, though, are the heated seats. Comfort is really important to me. At the end of a day's training you're cold, wet and tired so just getting into such a comfortable car is nice. Sometimes in the winter we row on frozen water and by the time we finish the back of my head will be totally iced up. Now I can get into my car for a rest; it's perfect for a warm, comfy snooze between sessions.
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