The pair laid wreaths and flowers on Cecil Healy's grave at a war cemetery in the small French village of Assevillers, an hour north of the Olympic city.

Cecil Healy, the gold and silver medal winning swimmer from the Stockholm 1912 Games was gunned down at the Somme in France on August 29th, 1918 - just 73 days before World War One ended.

The Olympians were joined by Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister Patrick Gorman MP, Australia's Ambassador to France Ms Gillian Bird PSM and the Mayor of Assevillers Didier Jacob.

2nd Lt Cecil Healy was a member of the 19th (Sportsman's) Battalion. He and the other Australian soldiers had come to liberate the villages of the Somme area when he was killed by machine gun fire.

His death was keenly felt in the Australian Olympic movement, not only because of his exceptional qualities as a freestyle swimmer, but particularly for the extraordinary act of sportsmanship he displayed at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics Games.

Cecil Healy denied himself a certain gold medal by insisting the race favourite Duke Kahanamoku be allowed to compete in the 100 metres freestyle final despite the American champion missing his semi-final due to an apparent mix up.

Cecil's stance led to officials holding a special semi-final, which included the American, who went on to win the final with Cecil Healy picking up the silver.

Cecil felt that without Duke Kahanamoku in the race, any gold medal would be tarnished.

In 2018, the AOC announced the Cecil Healy Award for Outstanding Sportsmanship to acknowledge his contribution - awarded for the first time to Cedric Dubler after the Tokyo 2020 Games.

Australian Olympic Team Deputy Chef de Mission and dual Olympic track cyclist Kaarle McCulloch says Cecil Healy was an inspiration Australian.

"This was a very proud moment for me today. Cecil Healy's memory is a powerful presence in the village of Assevillers - they have embraced his memory and his achievements.

"What stands out is his leadership, his bravery and his sportsmanship. And of course, he was such a wonderful athlete. Accounts of his life paint a vivid picture of a great Australian who lived his Olympic values. What a tragedy that he lost his life at a young age with the First World War coming to an end.

"He and Duke Kahanamoku were obviously great friends with the Duke's visit to Australia in 1914 putting surfing on the map in Australia. And now surfing is an Olympic sport - something that Cecil and Duke Kahanamoku could not have imagined back then. Today was an exceptional experience," she said.

Dual Olympian and Moscow 1980 gold medallist Michelle Ford joined the commemoration, honouring Cecil Healy's courage.

"It took a lot to go beyond our shores to Europe during a troubled time for the world to compete at the Stockholm 1912 Games - paying his own way also. I wanted to be part of this today to join the AOC and recognise someone who really stood for all the Olympic values," she said.

Following today's wreath laying, a further commemoration was held at a statue of the sportsman/soldier which was unveiled in 2018, marking 100 years since his death.

Assevillers resident Bertrand Fareneau had researched Cecil Healy's background in 2016 leading to the commissioning of the statue.

Mayor Didier Jacob, community members from Assevillers and the Australian party later shared a friendship toast to honour the strong bonds that link France and Australia.

Kaarle McCulloch presented the Mayor with the definitive book on Cecil Healy's life, penned by late gold medallist and champion swimmer John Devitt and author Larry Writer.

Photos courtesy "Cecil Healy - A Biography" by John Devitt and Larry Writer