For T.S. Eliot’s J. Alfred Prufrock, it was coffee spoons; but for Sir Ben Ainslie, life has been measured out in Olympic
medals and exceptional timepieces. In particular, Britain’s four-time Olympic gold medallist nominates three Rolex
watches he received for winning the World Sailor of the Year Award in 2002, 2008 and 2012. Ainslie describes the thrill
of racing on the water as a “a mixture of intensity and release”, and who can forget his nerve-shredding London 2012
medal race in Nothe Harbour off the coast at Weymouth, when he narrowly beat the Dane Jonas Høgh-Christensen
to gold and became the first person to win medals in five different Olympic Games in sailing? As you would expect
of one of the most successful sailors in Olympic history, Ainslie leans more towards the practical than the poetic. He
appreciates his Rolex Deepsea as “a seriously impressive piece of engineering” and his Sky Dweller as a prized everyday
watch that “in look, feel and functionality suits my lifestyle”. His favourite timepiece from a sailing perspective is his
Rolex Yacht-Master II: “To know that I could be racing in The Solent wearing a beautiful watch that I can actually use as
a practical tool for the pre-start and the race itself is very special.”—S.E.Sir Ben Ainslie CBE
COMPETITIVE SAILORPhotograph by ADAM FUSSELL
Photographed at the Royal Yacht Squadron, Isle of Wight, on July 19, 2019 wearing a Rolex Oyster Perpetual
Sky Dweller in Oystersteel and white gold on an Oyster braceletAUTUMN 2019 VANITY FAIR ON TIME 81