Olympic gold does not necessarily bring you fame and fortune, just ask Victoria Pendleton. The pin-up of the British cycling team that blitzed all and sundry on the track in Beijing has been recognised in public just three times since winning gold.

"So far, I've been spotted by a couple of cycling nerds and then one time by a guy in Starbucks," she said. "I just don't get recognised. I've not even seen people doing double takes and just not saying anything because they're too polite.

"I'd love to feel famous. Chris Hoy says it's tedious although I'm sure he's just saying that to make me feel better. I'd love to be a national hero or even a dame."

Pendleton has every right to feel aggrieved by the lack of recognition. She was the only individual cycling gold medallist from the British team in Beijing not to be nominated for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award last December.

"I just don't have a story," she said. "Chris Hoy made history, Bradley Wiggins defended his Olympic title, Rebecca Romero won medals in two sports and Nicole Cooke shone despite being hard done by in the past. And I guess I was just quite good."

Despite her comments, Pendleton insists there is no bitterness about being overlooked last year, although she admits she felt aggrieved to miss out on the final 10 after bagging three world titles on the track in Majorca in 2007.

That could be about to change. The 28-year-old, who originally hails from Bedfordshire, has the chance to a record four world titles in Pruzskow, Poland, from next Thursday.

And with Hoy out injured, Wiggins focusing on his road-race career and Romero on a break from track cycling, Pendleton will be the most notable figure in Team GB.

"Oh, I suppose I will be, which is odd as I remember my first day turning up for training with Team GB and being pretty scared," she said. "The guys are all really nice but they're such big dudes. I spent my time trying to get out of their way. Maybe people will try to stay out of my way now but I doubt it."

However, Pendleton is not brimming with confidence. Having already peaked once this season - in Beijing - she is struggling to recapture her full pace.

"I honestly don't know how I'll fare," she said. "The four golds will probably be too much but it's fun to give it a go. The problem is that the Olympics only involved a small section of the top track cyclists, so there are a lot of girls who'll be using the worlds as their Olympics."

Pendleton has set herself the less than ambitious target of two podiums in Poland but one suspects she is being modest - since Beijing, she has taken just five days off.

Pendleton's Olympic ambitions remain up in the air. As it stands, the individual sprint is the only event she is capable of entering although the suggestion is the keirin and/or the team sprint will be added to London's schedule. A move to the individual pursuit or road race is a possibility.

Should she bag gold again in three years' time, the prospect of becoming a dame could become a reality. But for now, her biggest struggle is protecting herself from the peril of white van drivers.

"Not even they recognise me, sadly, even in my Team GB kit so it's still a case of taking my life into my own hands on that front," she said.