Sir Chris Hoy gets help to handle pressure

Sir Chris Hoy and Victoria Pendleton face different pressures as they compete in the five-day National Track Cycling Championships, which start in Manchester today.

Both hope to lay down their marker as Britain's leading men and women sprinters but while Pendleton appears unrivalled at domestic level, Hoy faces stiff competition from Jason Kenny.

Earlier this year, Kenny had the beating of Olympic champion Hoy in the sprint while the Scot appears to remain a class apart in the keirin.

In the first true test for Hoy, a three‑time gold medallist from Beijing, it will be an early indication whether he is capable of defending those titles in London next year.

Since the World Championships in March where he won a silver and two bronzes, he has kept a low profile, having a holiday in Mauritius before focusing on his training. Hoy is well aware that a return to the track means a return to the spotlight. "I know what it feels like to have expectation but this is different when you know the whole world is watching you," he said. "It's why I've tried to learn from the experiences of athletes who've been in a similar position."

This year, he has spoken to Michael Johnson about the pressures of competing in front of his home crowd at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and also Sir Steve Redgrave about his bid for a fifth gold in Sydney.

At 35, Hoy still has no doubts that he has the legs to beat the world's best. He said: "If I hit my own personal performance markers then, when I get to race day, I'm going to be in the best shape of my life."