Sir Ben Ainslie has been robbed of his Rolex watch at knifepoint in Barcelona, ahead of qualification races for the America’s Cup, Spanish media have reported.

The most successful Olympic sailor of all time was threatened with a knife by a group who took his Rolex, worth €20,000 (£16,858), on Saturday night, newspaper La Vanguardia reported.

The 47-year-old confirmed the theft in a statement.

The four-time gold medallist is aiming to lead the British crew to a first-ever victory at the America’s Cup.

Sir Ben said in a statement: “Barcelona is a fantastic host city for the America’s Cup. The team has felt welcomed and is enjoying our stay in this vibrant city.

“Like in all big cities, you can be affected by opportunistic crime and my situation is no different. This is now a matter with the local authorities.”

BBC News has contacted his team Ineos Britannia and the regional Catalan police for further details.

On Thursday, Sir Ben will start racing in the Louis Vuitton Cup – a series of races to decide which boat will take on defending champions New Zealand for the Americas Cup in October.

Sir Ben is the team principal and skipper of the Britannia team, which is backed by billionaire and Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos Group.