St Albans' Daniel Bigsby insists he is a better sailor after rubbing shoulders with the great and the good from around the world at the Skandia Sail for Gold.

At just 19, Bigsby headed to the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, the London 2012 sailing venue, never expecting to come away with a medal in the laser competition.

It was just as tough as he predicted, finishing 42nd in the silver fleet while his seniors battled it out to land an early blow just two months before the Games kick off.

However, all was not lost for the former St Albans School pupil as he shared the Olympic waters with those sailors going for gold at London 2012 later this summer – notably reigning Olympic champion, compatriot Paul Goodison, who finished fourth.

And it was this chance to test himself against the world’s best that proved to Bigsby that his trip to the south coast was far from a wasted one.

“It was a tough competition but I came here mainly trying to gain some experience as I was one of only six or seven people out there who doesn’t have a coach,” said the Queen Mary Sailing Club member.

“It was a really good experience to get out there on the water against all the international sailors.

“I’ve been through the youth squad and at the moment I’m going it on my own and just trying to do it by myself.

“Hopefully it means that when I go in to the summer events I should be able to use some of the things I’ve learnt here and improve my standard.”

However, Bigsby doesn’t have much time to rest, with his eye firmly fixed on some international competitions later this summer.

And with his competition set to be more age appropriate, Bigsby isn’t ruling out success on the continent.

“My aim right now is to be competitive and get some decent results and in the summer I’m going to the Under-21 Europeans in Belgium so I’ll hopefully get in the top half there,” he added.

“I haven’t been to the Europeans before but last year I went to the Under-21 worlds in France and I came about halfway so I’ll definitely be looking to improve on that.”

Investment specialist Skandia is the principal sponsor of the British sailing team. For more information go to www.skandiateamgbr.com.