County councillor George Sanders hit out at colleagues for refusing to allow him to pay tribute to Oxfordshire's Olympic rowing heroes.

Steve Redgrave made history by claiming his fifth Olympic gold in Sydney in the coxless fours and there was also success for the men's coxed eight and the women's quad sculls.

But when Conservative councillor George Sanders, who represents Steve Redgrave's home town of Henley, tried to get the council to pay them a public tribute, and also congratulate Henley Rugby Football Club on its 70th anniversary, he was overruled.

Cllr Sanders wanted to bring a motion before the full council meeting on Tuesday suggesting that the authority should publicly praise the achievements. But after taking advice from officers, the chairman of the council, Labour's Dave Green, told him it would not be allowed because it was against the rules.

Cllr Sanders hit back: "I find it amazing that the chairman has done this it will bring the council into disrepute. How can we expect to rid councils of their image when they do things like this?"

Cllr Green said: "The council is run in a professional way, and it would have been against the rules for this motion to go before council in its current form.

"We have written to the rowers and the rugby club anyway, to congratulate them, so Cllr Sanders motion is totally unnecessary. In the run-up to election, there is always some political point-scoring and I think that is what is taking place here."