Steve Redgrave
Sir Stephen Geoffrey Redgrave CBE, or more commonly Steve Redgrave (born 23 March 1962), is a British rower who won a gold medal at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000, as well as an additional bronze medal in 1988. As the only Briton ever to achieve this feat, he is widely considered to be Britain's greatest Olympian. Only four other Olympians achieved the same: Pál Kovács, Aladár Gerevich, Reiner Klimke and 1984, in Los Angeles, in the coxed four (Redgrave - Martin Cross - Adrian Ellison - Andy Holmes - Richard Budgett).
Redgrave also won a bronze medal with Holmes in the coxed pairs in 1988. He has won nine Rowing World Championship gold medals. In 2000, he became the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
Having won his fourth gold medal in Atlanta Redgrave, when asked if he would be competing in Sydney four years hence, said, live on British television, "Anyone who sees me go anywhere near a boat again, ever, you've got my permission to shoot me." In 1997, Redgrave reversed his decision and announced his intention to compete in Sydney. He finally retired after his fifth consecutive success.
1. Birgit Fischer did not technically win gold in five Olympics in a row, as her country (East Germany) boycotted the 1984 Olympics. She won gold in 1980, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000 - arguably an even more impressive achievement.
Bibliography
Redgrave has also written a forward to Diabetes: The at Your Fingertips Guide
