Steve Redgrave is widely regarded as one of the greatest rowers of all time as well one of the most decorated British Olympians.In Atlanta, Ga., on July 27, 1996, he joined an exclusive club; he had won a gold medal in four consecutive Olympic Games. Only the Hungarian fencer Aladar Gerevich, the U.S. shot-putter Al Oerter, the Danish yachtsman Paul Elvstrom, and the U.S. track star Carl Lewis had equaled or surpassed Redgrave's Olympic record at the time, which included one gold in the coxed fours at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 and three in the coxless pairs, with Andy Holmes in 1988 and Matthew Pinsent in 1992 and 1996. Others may have won more medals, but few could sustain Redgrave's level of intensity over such a long period, his burning commitment to victory, or his psychological dominance over his opponents.