Watt stunned the cycling fraternity when she snatched the women's road race gold medal with a daring breakaway at the Barcelona Olympics, becoming the first Australian woman cyclist to win Olympic gold. It was an unexpected victory, even among her compatriots, and it heralded the arrival of a new force in world cycling.
A few days after her surprise triumph, Watt won the silver medal in the 3,000 metres individual pursuit -- missing out on a second gold by 1.685secs.
Four years on and 31-year-old Watt has demanded her own way -- and got it -- after another fierce disagreement with Australia's track cycling guru; coach Charlie Walsh.
Watt, a distinctive figure with her short-cropped, yellow-dyed hair, wants to defend her road racing title at Atlanta, as well as contesting the road time trial and the pursuit event on the track. Watt won bronze in the road time trial, a new Olympic event, at last year's world championships in Colombia.
Ever the individualist, Watt lobbied for a written guarantee from the Australian Cycling Federation that she would be able to compete in all three events; much to Walsh's chagrin. "We try to hold a policy of giving the athletes a go, but also making sure the Australian Cycling Federation puts the best athletes on the track,'' said a miffed Walsh, a man used to getting his own way.
"I'd prefer to have very little to do with it ... the only event I would be involved with her at Atlanta is the pursuit."
Scheduling should not be a problem for Watt in Atlanta as there are several days' rest between the road race, the pursuit -- an event in which she came close to breaking the world record earlier this year - and the time trial.
Watt says she is not disturbed by critics who say she is pushing herself too much. "You just have to put all that out of your mind and just go out there and do the best you can," she said. "Whatever happens, I just want to be able to say I've done the best I can and done everything possible to achieve that."
Watt has been training by putting in around 800 kilometres a week with a men's team and says her one remaining weakness is a dislike of competing in the cold -- something that is unlikely to pose a problem in the swelter of an Atlanta summer.
While being virtually unknown worked in her favour four years ago, that won't be the case for Watt this time around. Especially in the road race, she will have to rely on the support of her two teammates to repel her rivals and live up to the burden of national expectation.
But Watt is a formidably tough competitor and there are those within the Australian camp who are confident of further Olympic glory for a tough nut rider who emerged from the tiny Victorian town of Warragul, took on the world and won.