Victoria Pendleton has said she is "terrified" of defending her Olympic gold medal in front of the British fans at London 2012.

Pendleton won the Sprint in Beijing four years ago, one of eight British gold medals in track cycling - the nation's most successful discipline in China.

That success places an expectation of success upon every athlete, which eight-times world champion Pendleton, 31, is struggling to cope with.

“Being part of the British cycling team, you feel like if you’re not winning, it’s not good enough,” she said.

“Anything less than a gold medal is a failure. That sounds harsh, but that’s the way it is to be part of this programme. It’s horrible in a way.

“If you’re winning, everyone’s happy and not ecstatic – because winning is expected. If you’re not winning, there is clearly a problem.

"When you live and work in that bubble then it sometimes feels like the Olympics is the only thing that matters. It feels like it’s life or death, even though that’s ridiculous because it’s just another bike race.

“The gravity and weight of a home Olympics... it means so much that it’s difficult to explain.

“There’s a huge amount of prestige at stake and we all want to do well. Every gold medal would feel like double gold if it’s at home.

“I try not to think about the outcome, though there are two very different outcomes. It’s terrifying and exciting at the same time.”

Pendleton, who was awarded an MBE after Beijing, said people constantly make reference to the London Games in her presence.

“There is no escaping London 2012. You can’t forget for one minute that it’s going to happen,” she added. “Not a day goes by when people don’t mention it to me.

“You’ve always got that pressure, but it’s not always negative because that pressure drives you to achieve more and you want to be the best.

“But sometimes I question myself: do I have the ability to deal with the pressure?

“People always tell me I seem calm and confident and that’s because I work hard at keeping it in perspective.

“It’s a constant effort to do that because in so many ways it’s blown out of perspective due to living in the performance bubble of cycling.

“It doesn’t come to me naturally, I have to work at it. I wish it did but you can’t be good at everything. I try to see it as just another bike race. That’s the way I manage it.”

Pendleton said she and fellow gold medal hope Jason Kenny much prefer training to competing.

“I love training but, unfortunately, I have to compete in order to have my lifestyle, which I love," she continued.

“I’m not the only one who feels like that. Jason Kenny said to me that he really enjoys training, but finds competition heart-wrenching – like I do.

“But you have to get through it and it’s only for a few days. I won’t have to worry about it once it’s over.

“I don’t like having to prove myself, but I really like keeping fit for a living. You have to take the rough with the smooth.”

Eurosport