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#NoHumanIsLimited
19 May 2020
Ben Ainslie

“I think certainly in terms of what your aspirations are, what your goals are, there really shouldn’t be any limits”

Today as part of No Human Is Limited, in which some of the world’s most inspirational people involved in sport have come together to tell their own personal stories of why no human is limited ahead of the INEOS 1:59 Challenge, Eliud Kipchoge’s attempt to break the two hour marathon barrier, INEOS TEAM UK skipper and Team GB’s most successful Olympic sailor Sir Ben Ainslie has joined Chris Froome, Abdi Nageeye, Hermann Maier and Patrick Vieira in sharing his story. 

11 World Championships, nine European Championships, four Olympic gold medals and one Olympic silver medal have cemented Ben’s place as the most decorated Olympic sailor in history and ensured Ben Ainslie is a household name, not only in the sailing community but to Olympic enthusiasts worldwide. Ben’s infamous assertiveness on the water has, over the years, left competitors in his wake, no match for his admirable determination and ruthless tactics.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTEn0QXCsfk&t=46s

However, these have not always been characteristics associated with the world’s most successful Olympic sailor. Growing up, Ben was quiet, diligent, unassuming, even shy and it was only sailing that allowed Ben to fully express, push and eventually excel himself.

His next endeavour is the biggest yet as he skippers INEOS TEAM UK’s challenge for the 36th America’s Cup, to make history and win the oldest trophy in sport for Britain for the first time.

The British team revealed their new AC75 race boat named ‘Brittainia’ on Friday 4th October. The team has spent eighteen months, 90,000 design and 50,000 construction hours to develop the most complex America’s Cup class boats in the 168-year history of the event.

Named after Kipchoge’s personal mantra, No Human is Limited, the aim is to encourage people from across the world to embrace this philosophy, to break down their own barriers, sporting or otherwise and believe no one is limited in their lives.

Sir Ben Ainslie said:“Sport is not really about limits, it’s about trying to take things to the next level, so it’s not something I really refer to or think about to be honest.”

“You get limits in terms of the technicalities, the engineering of boats, but they’re limits that we’re constantly trying to push the boundaries of and take higher, so I guess that’s a target, that’s a goal for us.”

“Eliud is not pigeon-holed by other people’s expectations, he’s only looking at his own performance, how he can be the best, how he can be the greatest sportsman in his own field. He achieves this by not being limited, not being pigeon-holed and he works harder than anybody else to get to that level to achieve it.”