Sailing: Olympian Annie Lush says Team SCA must perform in the Volvo Ocean Race

Annie Lush admits with pride comes a burden of expectation for the all-female Team SCA crew in the forthcoming Volvo Ocean Race.

The 34-year-old from Poole is part of the 12-strong team that sets sail next month in one of ocean racing’s most prestigious events.

And Lush, who competed in the short-course match racing event at the London 2012 Olympics, is keen to repay the faith sponsors have shown in the crew.

“There’s a feeling of pride but also some nervousness,” Lush told Sky Sports. “I feel as though we have quite a big responsibility on us.

“It’s a massive opportunity that SCA have given us by sponsoring an all-female team and putting in the same resources as they would to a men’s team.

“There was a female team 12 years ago and there was a couple more before that but they’ve never really had the level of funding and support that we have now. So we don’t really have any excuses from that side and it’s a big responsibility.

“I hope we do a good enough job and it inspires other women to keep doing this. I hope sponsors continue to sponsor them in the future and I think that is what is really on our shoulders.”

Lush says the team does not have a concrete finishing position in mind for the seven-team race, but insists they are looking to improve over the duration of the 40,000-mile race around the globe.

“We don’t have a performance target in terms of a position,” she said. “We haven’t even raced against some of our competitors.

“That’s a big difference for me because I raced against my competitors for years and years heading into the Olympics. I knew their every move and probably knew how we’d fare but I have no idea what to expect out there in this race.

“I think also if you look at the history of this race teams who comes out strong at the beginning don’t necessarily dominate for nine months.

“It’s all about learning. We’re massively inexperienced and I think we are the youngest team out there as well.

“We have the least experience of all of the teams so we just want to make sure we learn as much as we can throughout the race.

“I hope you see a completely different team in leg nine to the one you see in leg one. I think it’s all about what we can gain throughout the race.”