Sir Steve Redgrave may be one of the greatest Olympians this country has ever produced - but he worries Dancing on Ice might just finish him off. The former rowing champion, who won gold at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984, admitted that, at 62 years old, he wasn’t expecting the competition to be easy. “I’m starting from a very low level, probably lower than everybody else due to my age," he said. "I don’t bounce as much as I used to.”.
The 6ft 5in sportsman, who has three grown-up kids with wife Lady Ann and is now a grandfather, said he had plenty of friends and family who are keen to come and watch him compete in the rink. He laughed: “They all want tickets for show one, I don’t think any of them are holding much hope for show nine.” One of the problems Steve must overcome are the health issues which threaten to get in the way of his training. “I’ve been diabetic for almost thirty years so the sensation in my feet isn’t as good as it used to be - navigating my footing on the ice could be a problem,” he explained.
"I also have Dupuytren’s contracture [an abnormality with the palm of the hand which causes the fingers to curl inwards] which affects my hands, meaning I can’t make them flat. So if I do fall over, although I’m planning not to, it means I may have trouble getting up.” And last year he confessed: “My knees and shoulders are shot. I’ve got arthritis. You name it, I’ve got it.".
