Molesey Boat Club captain Andy Triggs-Hodge reckons not being an Olympic champion will be the motivating factor over the next three years after labelling last season a failure.

The 30-year-old Beijing coxless four gold medalist rowed with Peter Reed as a pair for Great Britain throughout the summer, before being edged into silver medal position at August’s World Championships in Poland.

But the Chiswick-based double Olympian insists it is not all doom and gloom, and he will be working hard everyday to make sure it doesn’t happen in 2012.

“We didn’t bring out the potential we had, but we learnt a lot in the summer season and looking at the whole picture, it was very successful,” he said.

“We didn’t manage to do it on the day so in that sense the year was a failure, however, there was enough in there to show what we are capable of.

“I’m a silver medalist. I’m reasonably unfit compared to where I’d have to be in three years time and that is the motivation at the moment.

“I’m not an Olympic champion. The medal is in a box. I’ve got a lot of hard work to do to get to that stage and that is what I’ll be doing everyday between now and London 2012.”

Club-mate Tom James has a similar challenge ahead of him having just returned from a year away from the sport after putting his feet up since triumphing in the Far East.

And the Cardiff-born 25-year-old admits coming back was a difficult decision to make - despite the carrot of appearing at an Olympic Games on home soil.

“Coming back is a bit of a risk. Did I really want to risk not winning?” he added.

“You don’t get many opportunities to do something this special. From my point of view, I think I can be better than I was in Beijing. I had a fantastic year before then but I know I can be quite a bit stronger and fitter.

“If I had hit my ceiling maybe my decision would have been different, but I feel I’ve got plenty more to give.”

The pair were speaking at the launch of the Nomura-sponsored Varsity rugby clash - held at Twickenham in December - which saw them coach teams from Oxford and Cambridge University rugby sides to supremacy over 1,500m on an ergo-machine.

Cambridge drew first blood at Molesey Boat Club and James - himself a four-time light Blue - admitted old rivalries never die.

“Even when it is something as unimportant as this, it still counts,” he added.