Staff, who won a gold medal as part of the sprint team at the Olympics in Beijing last year, admits that a lot can happen between now and 2012, particularly in a sport as physically demanding as track cycling.

The 36-year-old Staff told insidethegames: “After my success in Beijing, I wasn’t too sure about my future.

"You have to work and train so hard for one moment of complete joy.

“I know that competing at 2012, in front of your home crowd, will be an amazing experience and winning an Olympic gold is a very addictive feeling but I have to be realistic.

"Age is not really on my side and there are a lot of very talented sprint cyclists coming through in Britain right now so I can’t take my place at the London Olympics for granted.

“Right now, I just have to work as hard as I can and take things one year at a time."

Staff, a former world BMX champion, decided to turn his attention to track cycling so that he would be able to compete at an Olympic Games, though BMX was later introduced as an Olympic sport in Beijing.

He said: “Competing at the Olympics was a huge goal for me.

"It is the greatest sporting event in the world and something I wanted to experience.

“BMX riding is tough because the schedule is so hectic.

"I used to compete almost every weekend but now in track cycling, I compete around four times a year so that’s much more friendly on the body."

Staff believes that British youngsters have things far easier than he himself did when he started out as a track cyclist.

He said: “British cycling has such great facilities and such a great system in place that all the youngsters have to do really is turn up.

“They get things handed to them on a plate and are, not to be derogatory, essentially mothered a lot.

"It was far different when Chris Hoy and I started out as we had to make our own chances to do well."

Staff though, believes the facilities in place for young British cyclists will help the them maintain its recent domination of the sport at the Olympic Games.

He said: "Things like the UK School Games are great.

"Young cyclists get the chance to compete at great facilities, experience dealing with the media and experience everything else that comes with competing at a multi sport event.

“When I went to the Athens 2004 Olympics, I had never experienced an event like it before and I couldn’t cope with the pressure.

“I really mucked things up in Athens and was lucky to get a second shot at glory in Beijing.

“But now, with so many fantastic provisions for British youngsters, they will prevented from making the same mistakes I did and be able to cope easily with the metal pressure of a major Games by experiencing the environment at a young age.”

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