50 stunning Olympic moments - Sir Steve Redgrave's fifth gold

After winning his fourth Olympic gold medal in Atlanta in 1996, Steve Redgrave notably told the media: "Anybody who sees me in a boat has my permission to shoot me." Four years later and despite being diagnosed with diabetes in 1997, Redgrave was back in training - his gruelling daily exploits were televised in a documentary entitled Gold Fever Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Redgrave was 38 by the time of the 2000 Olympic Games. Despite past successes in the coxless pairs with Matthew Pinset, the duo were no longer the dominant force in their discipline and instead joined forces with Tim Forster and James Cracknell to form a coxless fours team Photograph: Stu Forster/Getty Images

In the Olympic final, the Brits faced stiff competition from the Australian, US and Italian crews. With Redgrave controlling the tactics of the race, the Brits edged into the lead, but as the finish approached the Italians fought back ... Photograph: Popperfoto/Popperfoto/Getty Images

It looked as if the final stroke would determine the victors ... but the Brits dramatically held to win by 0.38 seconds Photograph: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

Redgrave slumped forwards with exhaustion, barely able to celebrate his historic achievement Photograph: Popperfoto/Popperfoto/Getty Images

Redgrave – one of only four Olympians in the world to win gold medals at five successive Games – later claimed he felt his crew had "another gear", but to those who witnessed the finish live on television it was an extraordinarily close finish Photograph: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

In what became an famous gesture, Pinset crawled through the boat to congratulate his companion before tumbling into the water. Pinset, himeself, was celebrating a third successive Olympic gold medal and would go on to win a fourth in Athens in 2004 Photograph: Popperfoto/Popperfoto/Getty Images

As the quartet took to the podium, Pinset was the most emotional Photograph: Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images

Redgrave, though, thanks to his remarkable achievement in the face of illness, was the star Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

On his return to Britain, the people of Marlow in Buckinghamshire took to the streets in their thousands to greet their most famous son. Redgrave was knighted in 2001 and, more than a decade on from winning his fifth gold, is thought to be one of the likely candidates to light the 2012 Olympic torch Photograph: Toby Melville/PA Archive/Press Association Ima