50 stunning Olympic moments: Eric the Eel – in pictures

Growing up with his family on the island of Bioko in Equatorial Guinea, Eric Moussambani (aged around 10 in this picture) was an unlikely Olympic hero. What's more, he was an unlikely swimming star. For starters, Eric couldn't really swim Photograph: Stephen Morrison/Rex Features

But eight months before the Olympic Games in Sydney, Moussambani, aged 21, began to earn his water wings in this 20m hotel swimming pool in his home city of Malabo Photograph: Stephen Morrison/Rex Features

After Equatorial Guinea were granted a wild card into the 100m freestyle – a measure intended to help developing nations participate despite their lack of finance and training facilities – Moussambani found himself perched on block No5, ready to compete at the highest level of international swimming
Photograph: Thierry Orban/Sygma/Corbis

By a stroke of fortune, Moussambani's rivals in the heats both false-started, making him the sole participant
Photograph: Thierry Orban/Sygma/Corbis

Moussambani raced from the blocks (relatively speaking), but by the half-way point the novice swimmer was clearly flagging. Never before had he seen an Olympic-sized swimming pool, let alone been in one, so the challenge of completing an entire 100m stretch without respite was monumental Photograph: Stu Forster/Getty Images

Roared on by the crowd, Moussambani splashed his way valiantly towards the finishing wall Photograph: Mike Powell/Getty Images

And finally, in a ludicrously slow time of 1min 52.72sec, he completed his remarkable journey. It mattered little to the crowd that Moussambani's time was more than a minute slower than the world record – his determination and endeavour had epitomised the Olympic spirit Photograph: Billy Stickland/Getty Images

Moussambani became one of the celebrities of the Games and was dubbed Eric the Eel. He was given a Speedo FastSkin bodysuit to help him improve his speed in the pool. And so he did – by 2004 he had shaved almost a minute of his 100m freestyle personal best. Unfortunately, issues with his visa prevented him from showcasing his newfound speed at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, meaning Moussambani will forever be remembered as the swimmer who could hardly swim Photograph: Rob Griffith/AP