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It was sailing at its meanest, sport at its most ruthless, Olympic competition at its most fierce.

But when Ben Ainslie had at last clinched a gold medal on Friday you just had to stand and applaud - because it was also absolutely stunning.

Admittedly, those are words you don't often hear in the sport of sailing which is so often looked upon as gentlemanly and genteel but in terms of excitement not dissimilar from watching paint dry.

As Ainslie took revenge over Brazilian Robert Scheidt, the five-times world champion who had beaten him to gold in Atlanta, we discovered that where Olympic gold is concerned anything goes on the water.

Ainslie finally got hold of the most precious metal in sport in the Open Laser class by just one point, the narrowest of margins.

But that doesn't tell the story of a remarkable afternoon of 'dirty tricks' and 'dirty air' which saw boats ramming each other, penalty flags fluttering, protests galore and knife-edge sailing - plus a four-hour wait before 23-year-old Ainslie was finally crowned Olympic champion.

At times all that was missing in Rushcutters Bay was a cutlass and bandana, a bloodcurdling cry, and a pirate's leap across the sparkling brine as Ainslie and Scheidt fought a battle on the High Seas under the magnificent backdrop of Sydney Harbour bridge.

The tension and drama began as the boats edged their way to the start of the final race of the competition - a race in which it appeared Ainslie had to finish 10 places ahead of the in-form Scheidt to secure gold.

It seemed hopeless. But desperate circumstances call for desperate measures and such is sailing's complex scoring system, with sailors allowed to ditch their two worst results from 11 races, that Ainslie calculated that if he prevented Scheidt from finishing 20th or better he would win gold.

His only option was to block the Brazilian from enjoying a clear sail, legitimate if savage sailing tactics which Ainslie executed to perfection, but which also turned the race into a compelling dog-fight at the rear of the race.

"It's a shame it had to come down to that. I would rather have won with a race to spare but I did what I had to do," said Ainslie.

"I was just trying to take his wind and force him into bad angles."

At the end, though, Ainslie admitted he was worried Scheidt might have still raced far enough up the field to wrest gold from his grasp.

"I was there biting my nails wondering how much he was going to catch up," said Ainslie.

"I was watching from the back desperately counting the boats in front of me."

He defended his 'stonewalling' tactics, however, saying: "If you're in the right that's the way it is. You have to know the rules to beat someone."

The business studies graduate from Macclesfield was helped when Scheidt made a mistake right at the start, touching Ainslie's boat and incurring a 720-degree penalty which allowed the Briton to position himself in front of the Brazilian boat.

For the next hour they tacked and turned in unison like a pair of synchronised swimmers as Ainslie baulked his opponent's every move, presenting the Brazilian's sails with 'dirty air' with which he struggled to proceed.

It was a spectacular demonstration of sailing, made all the more spicy by the fact that Scheidt had adopted a similar tactic at the start in Atlanta to deprive Ainslie of gold.

"Over the years we have had some great battles," said Ainslie.

"I am sure Rob will be very upset but there are ups and downs in this sport and I hope we can continue our friendship.

"It was very close in Atlanta when Rob got the better of me after he did the same thing as today.

"What goes around comes around. We're not the best of mates but I hope we can still be friends."

For the purists it was a bizarre scene as the rest of the field sailed out of sight leaving the two rivals to play cat-and-mouse at the rear for the main medals.

In the end, when Scheidt had finally broken free of his British shackles, it came down to a simple equation - Scheidt had to finish 20th or better to take gold.

And while in the final quarter of the race he began to surge through the field he could manage only 22nd place, leaving Ainslie in the gold medal position.

The drama, however, was still not over as Ainslie faced an agonising wait with the organisers thrashing out four separate protests, all of which could affect the standings.

If any of them had pushed Scheidt up the leaderboard in that remarkable final race Ainslie's gold would have been in danger.

They didn't and when the officials viewed the later collision on video they ruled Scheidt was at fault and should be disqualified.

It brought high praise, bordering on wonderment, from coach and British team manager John Derbyshire.

"To do what he did today has never been seen before in modern-day yachting," said Derbyshire.

"I didn't believe what I was seeing. "He knew he had a difficult job but he was very decisive, ruthless and clinical."

Ainslie added: "It was an amazing race, very tough. My only option was to try to do what I did.

"I am ecstatic at the way it went. I had nothing to lose.

"I am sure Rob is very upset but four years ago in Atlanta I was too young and naive. I realised Rob was a better sailor. Today was different."

And with that Ainslie went to celebrate, or in his words "get some lagers down my neck."

The events of this dramatic day were enough to turn anyone to drink - the day sailing's Mr Nice Guy turned nasty to 'steal' Olympic gold.