Ben Ainslie has made history by winning his fourth consecutive Olympic gold medal this afternoon.

Ainslie fought off a strong challenge from his great rival, Denmark's Jonas Hogh-Christensen, to take the gold despite finishing ninth in the final leg.

The gold makes Ainslie the most successful sailer in Olympic history with four consecutive golds and one silver.

The 35-year-old finished in the top three in six of his 11 races, just pipping Hogh-Christensen to the post as they finished ninth and tenth respectively in the final race.