Chris Hoy became the first Scottish gold medallist of the Beijing Olympics as he led his teammates to victory in the team sprint.

The 32-year-old from Edinburgh, along with Jamie Staff and Jason Kenny, beat off the strong French challenge in the track cycling.

They had already set a world record in qualifying. It is the first of three gold medals that Hoy hopes to win at these games, to add to the gold he won in Athens.

"To win as part of a team is a totally different feeling from the 1km time trial in Athens," he said.

"Our friendship has been so dominant in the last few years. As part of a team, you can't let anyone down.

"To beat them by half a second made it that exciting. Honestly, it took every inch of effort in beating the French who have been invincible.

"The French have been so dominant. We have really put all the pieces of the jigsaw together. We really focused on the details. To stick half a second into them, it's amazing."

Hoy now hopes to add the keirin and the men's sprint golds.

Hoy said: "There's still plenty in the tank.

"At the end of the week, if I get three, I'll do a dance for you and that's a promise."

The Scot reserved special praise for 20-year-old Kenny, adding: "He's young and talented and not fazed by the pressure at all, he's perfect for the team."

Staff was a member of the team that finished fifth in the event in Athens.

"It hasn't sunk in yet, it's weird, but mostly exciting," he said.

"We were very disappointed after Athens. I've given absolutely everything I could into it and it paid off.

"We've got a fantastically strong team, we showed everyone at the worlds how strong we are."