After returning without a single sailing medal from the Athens Games four years ago, Australia head into the Qingdao Olympic regatta determined to restore lost pride.
Australian sailors failed to build on their 2000 Sydney success, when they won two gold, one silver and one bronze, prompting an overhaul of the country's elite sailing set-up and the implementation of a 'Gold Medal Plan' for future Games.
"We were devastated after Athens and resolved to make whatever changes were necessary to address any shortcomings," Phil Jones, CEO of Yachting Australia, told Reuters in an email interview.
"Our plan has been driven very much by the Athens experience, and not wishing to repeat it."
Among many changes since Athens, Jones said a stronger professional team approach, including better support from the government, sponsors and key figures within the sailing community had "laid out a detailed pathway for success".
"By the end of August, we will know how successful we have been in our approach," he said.
Jones said the success in Sydney, when Australia finished second in the sailing medals tally, had masked a number of factors that contributed to a poor performance in Athens.
"Athletes from overseas spent a lot of time in Australia in the build-up to 2000. This meant we didn't have to travel to the extent that we would normally, leading to savings that could be spent in other areas.
"Preparations for the 2004 Olympics in Europe were expensive, and were made more so because of inflation and the relative strength of the dollar against European currencies at the time," he added.
"In an expensive, equipment-based sport, this had a significant impact on all areas of our programme and the ability of our athletes to properly prepare. All this, coupled with the benefits of the familiarity of a home Games in 2000 certainly had an impact in 2004."
Australia again have high hopes of success going into the Olympic regatta, boasting the world number one-ranked sailors in the Laser (Tom Slingsby), men's 470 (Nathan Wilmot and Malcolm Page) and Tornado (Darren Bundock and Glenn Ashby) classes.