By Paul Fletcher

Cracknell believes the coxless four must race smart in Germany

World Rowing Championships
Starts: Sunday, 26 August
Ends: Sunday, 2 September
Venue: Munich
Live coverage on BBC One, BBC Two, BBCi and the BBC Sport website

Double Olympic gold medallist James Cracknell says Britain's coxless four should not "reveal their hand" at the World Rowing Championships in Germany.

With the Beijing Olympics in 2008, Cracknell said it would be unwise for the crew to show their full potential.

"If I was them I would try to win but by the smallest possible margin so their rivals will aim a little less high," Cracknell told BBC Sport.

"If you give people a target to go for they will get there."

The four of Steve Williams, Andy Hodge, Peter Reed and Alex Partridge have reached Thursday's semi-finals in Munich.

"The best thing they can do is win but let the field close up to them as much as possible and let the others think they haven't got that much to improve," added the 35-year-old Cracknell, who won gold in the four in Sydney and Athens.

Coach Jurgen Grobler is the guy who makes these crews win - he is very underestimated James Cracknell

"There will be a little bit of kidology.

"Matthew Pinsent, Ed Coode, Steve Redgrave and I won the World Championships in 1999 by less than we might have - we eased off and left something up our sleeve - and the boys this year are streetwise enough to do that.

"Anyone who races between the autumn of 2004 and the summer of 2008 will trade every single race they have won to win the Olympics - the races in between are important but stepping stones to the Olympics."

The crew, with Tom James in for the injured Partridge, were defeated in July's World Cup regatta in Lucerne after a 29-race unbeaten run.

But they registered the fastest times in Saturday's heats despite making technical changes ahead of the championships.

And Cracknell has no doubt that any technical recommendations from coach Jurgen Grobler will be to the benefit of the team.

Cracknell believes the role of coach Jurgen Grobler is crucial

By his own admission, Cracknell had a disastrous time at the 2003 World Championships as a member of a coxless pair with Pinsent.

Grobler subsequently moved Cracknell and Pinsent into the coxless fours and they went on to win gold at the Athens Olympics the following year.

This season, Grobler moved the four into the eight for the World Cup regatta in Amsterdam in June, which they won.

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"Jurgen is the guy who makes these crews win and is a very underestimated part of the set-up," added Cracknell, who was speaking at an RAC charity track day challenge to raise money for the Caudwell's Children's Charity.

"He is more important than any athlete I have ever raced with because of his ability to get you in the best possible shape on the day of the race. Then it is up to you.

"The key thing - and what Jurgen does very well - is getting the technical side right while not forgetting that it is not there to look pretty, it is there to make you go faster."

And Cracknell revealed that the amount of time Grobler spends with the Great Britain rowers has a huge impact on his understanding of them.

"Jurgen sees training through long steady sessions, through intense sessions and learns how they respond to pressure," said Cracknell.

"He knows how to get the best out of a rower - he knows who needs space, who needs pushing, who needs reigning in. I think this is a key part of how he operates."