World's oldest Olympian dead at 101: Tributes pour in for 1948 cycling gold medalist

He won Olympic gold at the 1948 London Summer Games and later served as the penultimate torch bearer for the 2024 Pairs Games. Now, cycling legend Charles Coste has passed away at 101, his President, France's Emmanuel Macron announced in a statement Tuesday.

Macron's office said Coste was 'until his final breath, the tireless messenger of a certain idea of sport.'

The world's oldest living Olympian, Coste won the team pursuit gold medal at the 1948 Olympic Games in London at the famed Herne Hill velodrome.

Coste moved the Paris crowd as he carried the Olympic torch, dressed all in white in a wheelchair in the rain. He lit the torches of French Olympic gold medalists Teddy Riner and Marie-José Pérec, who teamed to light the cauldron during the rain-soaked opening ceremony.

'That moment symbolized the passion and spirit of transmission that drove him,' Riner said. 'Charles Coste embodied dedication, respect, and love for sport in all its forms.'

Coste became the oldest living Olympic champion in January following the death of Hungarian gymnast Ágnes Keleti.

He grew up near the southern port city of Toulon and began pedalling as a child on a wooden tricycle. 

Excelling on the track, he was crowned French amateur pursuit champion in 1947 and won a bronze medal at the world championships the next year.

He captured Olympic gold for France in the men's team pursuit in the first post-Second World War Games alongside teammates Pierre Adam, Serge Blusson and Fernand Decanali, a quartet known as the 'ABCD' team. Their win by nearly 39 seconds over Italy remains the greatest margin in Olympic history.

After the Olympics, Coste turned professional with the Peugeot team and achieved a prestigious victory at the 1949 Grand Prix des Nations, defeating Italy cycling great Fausto Coppi. 

He retired in 1959 after competing in two Tours de France and four Giros, according to the Elysee palace. He embarked on a new career as a sales inspector for La Blanchisserie de Grenelle, the largest laundry in Europe.

'The president of the republic and his wife pay tribute to the memory of this champion who left his mark on the history of his sport and of the nation,' Macron's office said. 'They extend their heartfelt condolences to his loved ones and to all cycling enthusiasts.'

French judo gold medalist Teddy Riner reacted to the news of Coste's passing on X a little more than a year after receiving the torch from the former cyclist at the 2024 opening ceremonies in Paris. 

'Charles Coste represented commitment, respect, and the love of sport in all its forms,' read a translation of the post. 'His journey commands admiration and his legacy will continue to inspire generations to come.'

International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry also shared her thoughts in a statement. 

'We have to say goodbye to an Olympic champion in cycling from London 1948 and the penultimate torchbearer at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Charles Coste,' she wrote. 'At 101 years old, he was the oldest living Olympic champion. 

'The image of him passing the Olympic flame to Teddy Riner and Marie-José Pérec in the rain of Paris during the Opening Ceremony of Paris 2024 went around the world. He will be remembered forever. Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time. – IOC