Russia's Andrey Moiseev and Hungary's Zsuzsanna Voros triumphed in the ultimate test of endurance and athletic versatility by winning the gold medals in modern pentathlon at the Athens Olympics.
Moiseev won the men's event by 13 seconds while Voros took the women's by 17 seconds, both finishing so far ahead of their rivals that they were able to stop and drape themselves in their national flags before crossing the finish line.
Modern pentathlon combines shooting with fencing, swimming, horse riding and cross-country running staged over a gruelling 10-hour period.
Moiseev was 19th after the shooting discipline but quickly stamped his authority on the event, winning 22 of his 31 bouts in fencing, and setting the fastest time in the 200 metres swim leg.
He knocked down six fences during the show-jumping but started the 3000 metre cross-country run with an 11-second lead which was never threatened.
Andrejus Zadneprovskis of Lithuania finished second after starting the run in sixth place while Libor Capalini of the Czech Republic crossed the line third to take bronze after being fifth following the show-jumping.
Voros, 27, added the Olympic title to her three world championships with an even easier win in the women's event.
Voros did not win any of the five disciplines but was the most consistent, finishing third in shooting, fifth in fencing, fourth in swimming and ninth in show jumping to start the run 41 seconds ahead.
{{/usCountry}}Voros did not win any of the five disciplines but was the most consistent, finishing third in shooting, fifth in fencing, fourth in swimming and ninth in show jumping to start the run 41 seconds ahead.
{{/usCountry}}"I was sure I was going to win because 41 seconds is a huge lead, I just had to make sure I didn't fall over," she said.
Jelena Rublevska of Latvia took the silver while Georgina Harland of Britain collected the bronze after starting the final leg in 14th position.