Chalien Dantes/Contributor

French cycling legend Charles Coste, the oldest living Olympian and a 1948 gold medalist, has passed away at the age of 101, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced.

Coste captured gold in the team pursuit at the 1948 London Olympics, where France defeated Italy by an incredible 39 seconds, still the largest winning margin in Olympic history. Just a year before, he had claimed victory in the individual pursuit at the French amateur championships.

Following his Olympic win, Coste earned a bronze medal at the 1948 World Championships and continued competing until his retirement in 1959. Though he took part in two Tours de France, he didn’t finish either, but his legacy as a pioneer of French cycling endured.

Last year in Paris, his lifetime of achievement was celebrated when he passed the Olympic flame to fellow French greats Teddy Riner and Marie-José Pérec, a fitting tribute to a century-spanning sports hero.