RODDY: Even at the age of three or four, it was obvious that Ben enjoyed being on the water. My wife and I had a small boat - nothing fancy - and we used to take Ben and his sister, Fleur, out with us. I guess some people are frightened of water, but Ben wasn't - he was fascinated by it. Loved being out there. We got him an Optimist dinghy when he was about eight - people always think sailing's a rich man's sport, but I think that boat cost us a hundred quid - joined the local sailing club in Cornwall and let him get on with it. He was obviously keen, so the next year we bought him a slightly better boat and he started doing a bit of local racing.

He must have been 11 when he went up to the Optimist Open and National Championships, which was his first big competition, and he came away with the under-12s trophy. The next thing was he got an invitation to join the national youth squad and people suddenly started saying to me: 'He's going to be a star.

The incident that really brought home to me how seriously Ben was taking the sailing was out on West Kirby marine lake up in the Wirral.

He was up by the windward mark and chasing this girl who was a bit older than him, probably 14 or 15. A lot of the youngsters used to call her Granny and I could see Ben really going after her. As he came up on the mark, I heard him shout: 'F*** off, Granny!' There were a few other parents on the bank with me and they were all saying: 'Oh, dear, who is that little boy?' I pleaded ignorance: 'I've no idea, but somebody really needs to have a word with him.' Inside, of course, I was chuckling away to myself. He just wanted to win!

God knows where he gets that drive and ambition from. I don't think it's from his mother or me. I love sailing and I've even done a bit of racing [Roddy skippered a boat in the first-ever Whitbread round-the-world race in 1973-74], but it never really bothered me if I didn't win. I've never really been like that. Never been competitive, been the pushy parent. I've seen parents like that and it just drives the kids away. The dads are standing there on the bank, barking out orders like it's a military training course. It's meant to be fun! If your kid's not enjoying it, what's the point of them being there? All I've ever tried to do is provide the facilities for him to do what he

wants to do. If he needed some equipment or needed driving somewhere, I was there for him. How much he puts into sailing and how hard he tries is all down to Ben. You can't push them - you can't force a kid to do well at something. He was doing all right without my help, anyway.

In fact, the only time I've ever had to sit down and have a really serious talk with him about sailing was when he was 17 and he started thinking about the 1996 Olympics. At the time he was ranked fourth in the country and he'd won a lot of events, so the Olympics seemed like the next natural step. The problem was that he was also in the middle of his A-levels. That's a lot of pressure for a teenager. I just wanted to be sure he knew what he was taking on, because, well, there's no point in trying out for the Olympics unless you're completely, 100% focused. If you're going to do it, do it properly. Don't do a half-hearted job. He said: 'Dad, I don't even mind if I don't get picked. I think the experience will be good for me and maybe we can start thinking about Sydney in 2000.' As it was, he did get selected and even got his three A-levels.

We were a bit worried about him when he went out to Atlanta in 1996. Well, worried is not quite the right word. He was still a kid. All the other guys in the team were older and more experienced than Ben. That sort of thing can affect you. So, as a family, we decided to go out there. Luckily, my wife and I were in a position where we had the time and the means to rent a place in Savannah. Fleur came, too - she got a job working at the Olympics. We wanted to be there for him. I didn't want him cooped up in some hotel for all that time. When you're young, that sort of thing can start messing with your mind. You start burning the candle at both ends. After practice or after a race, Ben had a place to come back to where he could relax and just be himself.

Ben was Britain's youngest-ever Olympic sailing medallist. He came away from the Atlanta Games with silver. Almost came away with the gold. He was that close. That close! He was pretty disappointed, but he'd got a silver medal at his first Olympics. I said: 'Come on, kid. You've got a silver. You can't grumble at that.' It was an amazing result, and after that he just didn't stop. It was almost as if missing out on the gold made him even more determined. He's been national champion, he's won European championships, world championships, three Olympic golds - incredible!

Yes, I'm proud of him, but proud isn't really the right word. It's more than that. When I watch him compete and beat the best sailors in the world, the feeling I get is a feeling that I can't really explain. It's just too big - too much to take in. How can you put that into words? What do you say to your son when he's achieved all that Ben's achieved? All I can do is walk up to him, slap him on the back and say: 'Well done, chum. Well done.'

BEN: Oh, God, I'd forgotten about the whole 'Granny incident'. But I don’t think it was anything serious. You know how kids are - they get a bit carried away. Looking back, I suppose it was because sailing was the only thing I was any good at. Kids always want to be good at something, don't they? They want their mates to be impressed. Sailing was all I had, so I gave it everything.

I was quite a shy kid and a bit of a loner, which was actually quite useful. I didn't mind being out in the boat on my own. We lived by the sea, and by the time my parents bought me my own boat, when I was eight, I'd been out with Dad loads of times. But I didn't really know how to 'sail'. Dad just put the boat in the water and said: 'Right, Mum and I are off to the pub. We'll see you there in 15 minutes. I had no idea what I was doing, but, somehow, I got the boat to the pub.