On your marks, get set ... get lucky

Most of us have routines, habits and superstitions - some bordering on OCD. We'll wear our lucky shirt to an interview, arrange our cutlery in a particular way or turn the oven off three times, just to be sure. In a competitive environment, where athletes are all going for gold, years of training, drastic diets and intense coaching might just not be enough ... so, sometimes, the Olympians turn to luck.

"Superstition is very common in sport, most of all because of the uncertainty of the outcome," says sports psychologist Dr George Sik. "Athletes use it so they can rely on something else other than their own consciousness. Sport is generally based on repetition and superstition means being in control, adding a safety net. It affects the mind and not the body. If you convince yourself that you are in luck, you'll boost your confidence and tend to perform better. And if you fail you can always blame it on the luck."

So, although they may know deep down that a "lucky" pair of socks won't take them over the line any faster, many athletes stick to their rituals for that little bit of confidence, belief and a sense of security. Here are London 2012's top superstitions:

Rebecca Adlington, double Olympic gold swimmer in Beijing, has admitted to obsessive compulsive disorder about even numbers. "I can only set my alarm on two, four or six. Otherwise I think the worst is going to happen."

Phillips Idowu, the triple jump world champion, cannot compete without wearing a headband and wristbands.

British open water and 800m freestyle swimmer Cassie Patten won't leave home until she knows her teddy bear and toy clown, Rainbow and Sniffy, are tucked up in her bed.