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Jonathan Edwards has endorsed UKA chief executive Niels de Vos's claim that Great Britain can capture ten track and field medals at London 2012 - and expects Phillips Idowu to lead the gold rush.

Great Britain's haul of six medals from August's World Championships in Berlin, one more than the initial target, has given renewed confidence to de Vos and UKA head coach Charles van Commenee.

British athletes mustered just four medals from the Beijing Olympics last year, but with home advantage in three years' time de Vos has been bold with his predictions.

That has prompted some former athletes - including Olympic silver medallist Roger Black - to pour cold water on the bold prediction.

But Edwards, who captured triple jump gold at Sydney 2000, believes there are grounds to be optimistic.

"I agree with Niels de Vos that ten medals is a realistic aim for our athletics team," said Edwards, who sits on the board of the London 2012 organising committee.

"Berlin was the best we've done (at a World Championships) since 1993 which is looking back to the 'golden era' of British athletics and Berlin was beyond all expectations really.

"Aside from the six medallists we had a number of athletes getting personal bests and reaching finals so they are on a progression towards 2012.

"You can add to that the fact that it's a home Olympics and the crowd will be behind the athletes in a way that they've never experienced before.

"Getting ten medals is very obtainable, not easy, but obtainable definitely."

Edwards, the last British male athlete to claim individual Olympic gold, remains the triple jump world record holder, having leapt to a mammoth 18.29 metres at the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg.

Idowu finally stepped out of Edwards's shadow in August to take gold in Berlin, his first major outdoor international victory at the age of 30.

And Edwards is adamant Idowu will be perfectly primed to upgrade his Beijing silver at London 2012.

"Phillips Idowu has a great chance of winning gold in 2012," he added.

"He is an East End boy who will be 33, one year younger than me when I won my gold medal in Sydney.

"So I think he will be in the form of his life at that stage. He's got to nurse his way through the next three years because he's a big guy and it's a tough event but he will be one of the favourites.

"I think Christine Ohuruogu will be another favourite, especially as she is also from the East End and will be looking to do well in front of her home crowd.

"And Lisa Dobriskey is a world-class athlete who will inspire a lot of young girls.

"Then long jumper Greg Rutherford is another hope after a great qualifying performance in Berlin. He couldn't quite reproduce it in the final but he could be in the mix in London.

"There is a range of young athletes who, if they can get it right over the next three years, could be in contention when 2012 comes around."

More Than The Games / Eurosport