Many of the most memorable photographic images have been those captured during the drama and emotion of sport.

Whether it be a devastating Mike Tyson punch, Usain Bolt racing to 100-metre glory, or a cross-court Rafa Nadal winner, Kent's John Gichigi has seen and snapped it all.

He’s also rubbed shoulders with Barack Obama, fallen out with heavyweight boxer Frank Bruno, and been told not to make eye contact with Beyoncé.

But now, after a 30-year career with the world’s leading picture agency, his life running a care home in Canterbury is far-removed from the hectic days of following the world’s biggest stars around the globe.

With Getty Images, John went to more than 50 countries, covering five summer and winter Olympics, and many other international sporting tournaments.

Known as ‘John Gee’ in the industry, he was on first-name terms with some of the icons of sport.

His corporate work for the agency also saw him photograph the likes of Jennifer Lopez and David Beckham, with Nelson Mandela even finding his way into the glare of his lens.

But the constant travelling and long periods away took its toll on family life, and he admits he wishes he had been able to spend more time at home.

“It was very exciting for many years, but I only got about 10 weekends off a year and missed out on valuable time with my wife and four boys,” he says.

“It’s really a job that suits a young, single person.”

It was the time away and increasing pressure to continually come up with front-page photos that persuaded John to retire in 2010, aged 55, after covering the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

But his legacy is an extraordinary portfolio of some of sport’s most stunning and recognisable images, which made the front covers of numerous leading publications.

John now runs the Red House Nursing home in Canterbury, having taken over the business from his mother.

The family arrived in the UK from Kenya when John was 16, with his mother training and working as a nurse.

His own interest in photography was sparked when he went to study architecture at the University of Westminster and bought a humble Practica to photograph his projects.

“Within weeks I had converted my bedroom into a dark room,” he recalls.

“I photographed everything and anything, and was hooked.

“I got the bug for it so badly that I decided switch courses to photography.”

In 1979, after a spell doing freelance work and commissions for companies and magazines, John was introduced to the Allsport picture agency, which he joined. The company was later taken over by Getty Images, where John remained for the rest of his career.

He says the pressure to capture pictures that sell was enormous, and could be won or lost in a fraction of a second.

“I remember a 100m sprint race when a marshal walked right in front of me just as Usain Bolt crossed the finishing line,” he recalls.

“In the blink of an eye the moment is gone, but they didn’t want to know about your problems back at the office, just ‘did you get the picture?’.

“It was a tough job and half the skill is knowing the sport and anticipation.”

Boxing became John’s favourite sport, as he had fought a little as an amateur and had an appreciation for it.

Many fighters, like Nigel Benn, became good friends, and he was allowed into their ‘inner circle’.

He was ringside for Benn’s infamous fight against Gerald McClellan at the London Arena in 1995, which tragically resulted in the American suffering brain damage.

“I’d been with Nigel at his training camp in Tenerife before the fight and obviously wanted him to win, “ he said.

“The build-up had been quite acrimonious and it turned out to be a brutal affair,” he recalls.

“Nigel was getting beaten up in the first round and got put down.

“I feared it was going to be all over quite quickly, but he came back, and then it was McClellan who was suffering.

“Nigel put him down twice in the 10th and it was over. McClellan slumped on his stool and at that stage, he didn’t look too bad.

“I was close by taking photographs when his corner men warned me off, but I was just doing my job.

“He then started to deteriorate quickly and collapsed. It became obvious something was seriously wrong and the medics moved in and rushed him to hospital. Obviously, we weren’t aware quite how bad things would turn out. It was absolutely tragic.”

John also recalls having a falling out with Frank Bruno over some studio photos that were widely published.

“He went off me for a while, but out of the blue some years later I got an invite to come to his house with my family for a party, so we made up in the end,” he says.

The picture John is most proud of is another from boxing, in 1985, when Lennox Lewis fought Oliver McCall, who put the British champion down with a huge right hand in a shock win.

“I think I like it because I was the only one to get the picture, and it was published worldwide,” he said.

In other sports, John says his shot of a table tennis player with the ball between his eyes is another favourite.

“We were shooting on 35mm back then so I had to send my films back to the lab. I had no idea I had the shot until a technician called to tell me I’d got a cracker,” he said.

Away from the sporting action, John has photographed many celebrities for sponsorship shoots, like Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez.

“They were filming for Pepsi commercials and a couple of us were doing the stills,” said John.

“We only had a couple of minutes in between takes so there was definitely no chat. In fact, we were strictly told not to make eye contact for any length of time, which was not easy with Beyoncé.”

John’s photographic expertise was so prized that the International Olympic Committee made him their official photographer for the Lillihammer winter games in 1994, to provide comprehensive coverage for their archives.

And one of his most prized possessions is an Olympic torch presented to him by the committee to mark 20 years covering the Olympics, which was signed by gold medalists Daley Thompson and Kelly Holmes.

So well-regarded does John remain in the industry, that only this month he was invited to be a judge in the photography section of the British Sports Journalism Awards.

But he has also had his mishaps during his long career.

He took a direct hit in a delicate area from a ball kicked by Brazilian legend Ronaldinho, was frozen to the spot when Mike Tyson glared directly at him after a reporter behind John asked a question about the boxer’s infamous rape case, and got flattened by a 20-stone rugby player on the touchline during a match at Bath.

“I queued up with some other players to have my lip and cheek stitched up, but didn’t want to appear a wimp, even though I felt sick,” he says.

John also recalls using the toilet at 10 Downing Street during John Major’s tenure, when he was invited as the official photographer for the British team for the round-the-world sailing race.

“When nature calls, you just have to go,” he jokes.

Other highlights include being invited to Buckingham Palace for dinner in the Presidential suite, and being the only photographer selected to travel with David Beckham in his car for a publicity tour of Singapore.

“I worked with him a few times, including for Adidas, and got on well with him,” John says.

“But if he didn’t like you or what you wanted, you certainly knew it because his time was so limited and he was always in demand.

“He would get mobbed, almost like the Beatles.”

John was also one of just two photographers in front of the London Olympics bid team to capture the raw emotion of winning the 2012 games.

“Most photographers were facing the French team, for their Paris bid, who were favourites,” he said.

“But it was a case of right time, right place.”

John recalls the huge security surrounding figures like Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela, who he photographed at Olympic ceremonies.

“The whole place was crawling with security agents, and the building was swept and effectively put into lockdown,” he said.

Since retiring, John has barely picked up his cameras, and focuses instead on running his nursing home.

But now aged 67, he says he is getting the bug back - this time to shoot pictures for himself.

“I have a great team at the Red House so I have more time on my hands,” he says.

“I quite like the idea of something like bird photography, where you can sit in a hide and while away the time, instead of being under the pressure of split-second timing.”

To see more of John’s work, click here.