Olympic gold medallists Polly Powrie and Jo Aleh sailed into Blenheim last week for a function at the new Babich Wines facility. Marlborough Express sports editor Peter Jones found a gap in their busy schedule to talk about life after London and how the world 470 class champions are preparing for Rio.

A t the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Polly Powrie and Jo Aleh could become the first New Zealand sailors to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals. But that lofty concept is a long way from the minds of the 2013 world female Sailors of the Year.

They will head for Brazil with one objective - to claim a Rio Olympics gold medal. A fine distinction, but important, explains Aleh.

"It won't be about repeating, it's a different regatta, a new challenge for us. We look at it more as trying to win gold in Rio. It's going to take a whole other set of skills, so hopefully by the time we get there we'll have those."

In 2012, the 470 duo were victorious on the water off Weymouth, the first gold for NZ in a sailing class other than windsurfers since 1984, when Russell Coutts won the Finn class and Chris Timms and Rex Sellers took out the Tornado class in Los Angeles.

Although they can still stroll the streets of Blenheim virtually unrecognised, the pair admit life has changed since their Olympic heroics.

"Before the Olympics we hardly had any sponsors, apart from the government funding, but this time round we've suddenly got seven sponsors, that's a big difference for us, a really positive difference," said Powrie.

"Expectations have changed," added Aleh. "Before [London] we knew what we wanted to do but no-one else really cared so much. Now people seem to notice a bit more. You get pressure from more sources [externally] now."

Powrie and Aleh have also noticed an upsurge in interest in their sport. "I think with the Olympics and the America's Cup it just sort of builds on it," said Aleh. "I was amazed when the America's Cup was on how into it everyone was. Hopefully every four years at the Olympics sailing features there. I hope it keeps the interest up. It's hard for us to tell because we're just busy doing it."

They were fortunate enough to be in San Francisco for the early stages of the America's Cup campaign, "before it all went pear-shaped".

Aleh was hugely impressed with the computer-generated graphics surrounding the Cup coverage, and by the public response. "It was amazing how people that didn't know that much about yachting could understand it. I would go into the gym and they'd say ‘when they tack there, why did they do that?' - normally no-one could tell what's happening, they explained it so well. I hope they keep that going. They can do that for Olympic coverage and they are slowly starting to do it more and more for other regattas. But there's a lot of money needed."

The duo head for Rio later this year for a Test Regatta on a course similar to where they hope the Olympics will be sailed. "It's where we think the [Olympic] course will be," says Aleh. "There's a lot of area there they can use, in the harbour, out of the harbour . . . we'll be sailing on the water but won't find out the course until much later."

They went to Rio last year for a trial run, part of the meticulous preparation they put in before any competition. The pair borrowed a boat and found the course offered "quite a variety" of sailing conditions, and "dirty water". "We had a bit of everything when we were there," said Aleh, "from no wind to lots of wind. But every time we go there we'll learn more."

"For us venue is so important," said Powrie, "compared with other Olympic sports."

"In London we probably sailed 50 or 60 days at the venue prior to the event," added Aleh. "But for Rio it's harder to do that logistically."

While unsure what conditions they will face in Rio, Powrie and Aleh expect that by the time they line up in the Olympic regatta, they will be prepared for anything that comes. "We're just going to get everything," said Powrie.

"I guess the aim of sailing is to be the most consistent, plus we don't favour any particular wind or wave conditions over anything else. You are going to get the weather you are going to get - you can't control it so you try and get the best you can out of any conditions.

"Hopefully by the time we get there it won't matter what the conditions are, we can handle anything. It's a game of consistency," added Aleh.

Despite their London success the pair aren't resting on their laurels, being keen to lift their game even higher. "I guess we didn't think we'd raised the bar as high as we could last time," said Aleh. "We had a lot more to improve on at the last Olympics. We came away from that with a big list to work on.

"It's the same every year. We won the worlds last year, finally, but still we came back with a list of things we can do better. It's just continual improvement. You can never be perfect with sailing. It's just accumulated knowledge."

So, will we still see Powrie and Aleh sailing together in the 470 class after Rio?

"We live in a four year cycle," said Aleh. "There are a few options, but you don't plan too far past that. We've got that goal and everything goes towards that. I guess after Rio we'll just see what happens."

Thanks to our source: The Marlborough Express