BEN Ainslie's bid to join Britain's elite group of Olympic legends remained on course yesterday, as the Lymington star moved into pole position in the Finn class.

The reigning champion stepped up his challenge for a third consecutive gold medal by securing first and 10th-place finishes on the third day of the sailing regatta in Qingdao.

The 31-year-old, who is attempting to surpass Rodney Pattison as Britain's most successful Olympic sailor by winning a fourth medal of any colour in China, began the day five points adrift of American Zach Railey but powered ahead after a sensational win in the opening race.

The five-time Finn world champion trailed in ninth place at the halfway point, 55 seconds off the lead, but came back to pip Brazil's Eduardo Couto for his third win in four races.

He finished 10th in race six but managed to maintain a one-point lead over Railey, who was seventh and eighth in yesterday's races.

Ainslie, who is on a rest day today, was frustrated not to have gained a bigger advantage after posting 10th in the second race.

"It was a good race in the first, but I would have liked to have done a lot better in the second so that was pretty disappointing. But there's still a long way to go and it's good to be at the right end of the fleet."

Explaining how to combat the difficult conditions in China, Ainslie added: "It's really just about finding a lane and finding some breeze and you can use your technique.

"If you get stuck in the fleet like I did in that second race then it's hard to make the gains.

"The tide is almost twice as strong as anywhere else we sail in the world. The breeze is very light, it's very fickle and changes direction subtly, but it's very important to pick up those subtle changes in direction.

"Everyone's a bit up and down and it's a case of trying to pull back some places and make the race count when you're not doing so well."

Ainslie, whose Finn class continues tomorrow with races seven and eight, is looking forward to taking a break from the hot and humid conditions on the Yellow Sea.

"It will be good to have the day off because it's so hot here," he said.

"The heat takes a lot out of you so it's nice to have a day of rest to stay in the cool.

"But the opposite of that is that when you've got the momentum going, you just want to keep racing and get it done.

"The best thing is to make the most of it and keep your focus for the next day."