Daley Thompson believes Great Britain's Olympians can thrive in the pressure of a home Games.
The likes of heptathlete Jessica Ennis, diver Tom Daley and multiple-distance runner Mo Farah have been in the public eye for the last couple of years with extensive media coverage and advertising campaigns.
But Thompson, who won gold medals at the 1980 and 1984 Olympics, reckons the extra exposure can help the respective athletes succeed.
"Everybody has got their favourites and the people they know and the people they have seen on TV in the last few years, and I'm sure they will do really well," he said.
"Over the years you come to accept that extra pressure and use it as a positive thing.
"Like everything, it can have its downsides and there will be some people it negatively affects.
"You never know who that is going to be and you hope that you have got the right kind of infrastructure and team around you to ease that kind of stress."
Despite his success in Moscow and Los Angeles Thompson, admitted he would have loved to participate in a home Olympics and the extra benefits they offer to native athletes.
He said: "I'm hoping it is going to make a huge difference to everybody because in the last eight to 10 Olympics the home nation has always done 30 or 40% better, so I'm hoping the same is going to apply to us and we are going to win a whole heap of medals.
"Everybody wants to go to an Olympic Games but the best Olympics to go to will be a home one.
"I never had the opportunity and I think every athlete would love to do that."
The successful bid for the hosting of the 2012 Games and the ensuing infrastructure surrounded the idea of creating an Olympic 'legacy' in the aftermath of the Olympics and Paralympics.
Thompson feels the lasting impact of hosting the biggest sporting event in the world is a great way of getting the British public more involved with sport.
He said: "The whole thing about the Olympic Games, at least for me, is to inspire another generation.
"I think the presentation of the Games is a fantastic spectacle for two-and-a-half weeks that the whole country and the whole world can enjoy.
"But I think the really big opportunity in having an Olympic Games is the fact you can introduce sport back into people's lives.
"In the last 10-15 years sport has become a secondary thing. I just think we could use the Games to really good affect to get people into sport and just being healthier.
"The more people you have coming into sport, theoretically the more chance you have of finding the superstars. I would love people to become superstars but the important thing is to get people into healthier lifestyles."
