Steve Redgrave complained that the schedule of rowing medal presentations catered more for the media than the competitors or fans after winning a rowing gold medal for the fifth successive Olympics.

The 38-year-old Briton, who won his fifth gold in the men's coxless four, was angered when officials tried to move him on to the medal ceremony.

"It can wait - didn't they say in the opening ceremony that this was the athletes' Games? We'll be there when we're ready," he said, after climbing from his boat.

Many rowing courses allow for crews to row back along the shoreline to the delight of spectators.

But competitors at the Sydney International Regatta Centre were quickly herded in to meet with the waiting media and then ushered along for the ceremony.

"I wasn't overly happy with the way the medal ceremony was done," admitted Redgrave.

"There was a few points that could have made it much more special for the athletes and a lot more special for the crowd.

"We were very lucky that we were the last medal race of the day so we had the opportunity, or we took the opportunity, to do things a little bit differently."

Redgrave said people had paid a lot of money to watch the rowing and it should be made special for them.

"The sport is not just about the competitors and it's certainly not just about the media. It's about the people who come and watch it as well."