Nicknamed King Arthur by the French press, legendary gymnast Arthur Magakian died at the age of 89 from a brain tumor last week.

Born on Nov 11, 1925 in Vienne (France), Magakian became champion of France in junior decathlon gymnastics in 1945. In 1952, he missed the Olympic Games in Helsinki due to an injury, thus ending the career.

However, he later became one of the leading coaches of the French Gymnastics Federation and served as its first national technical director from 1963 to 1986.

His career was rewarded with the Legion of Honor, the National Order of Merit and the Gold Medal of Youth and Sports.