Maarten van der Weijden, who was given only a slim chance of survival after being diagnosed with leukaemia, won one of the most gruelling Olympic events on Thursday when he took gold in the men's 10km open water marathon.
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The Dutch swimmer was diagnosed with leukaemia seven years ago but pulled through after a stem cell transplant and a course of chemotherapy.
He added the Olympic title to his 25km world crown when he won a sprint finish in the inaugural 10km men's race after a three-man tussle which lasted nearly two hours.
Swimming in only his third open water race, Briton David Davies finished two seconds behind Van der Weijden, with German Thomas Lurz taking bronze.
From chemo patient to Olympic glory
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