Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe has been elected chairperson of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), becoming the first woman to hold this position in IOC history.
At the 144th IOC General Assembly held in Greece on the 20th (local time), Coventry secured victory in the first round of voting by gaining majority support among the more than 100 IOC commissioners. Although the election was expected to be a fierce contest, Coventry received overwhelming support. The term for the IOC chairperson is eight years.
According to the Financial Times (FT), Coventry's competition in this election included seven candidates, including Sebastian Coe, president of World Athletics from the UK, and Juan Antonio Samaranch, a financier from Spain. Notably, Samaranch is the son of a former chairperson who led the IOC for over 20 years and is considered a person of strong influence within the IOC.
◇ Africa's most decorated athlete with two gold medals
Coventry, who was chosen as the successor to former chairperson Thomas Bach, is a 41-year-old former swimmer, a national star in Zimbabwe known as the "Golden Girl."
According to the Associated Press (AP), Coventry is a graduate of Auburn University in Alabama, USA, and first competed in the Sydney Olympics in 2000. She won three medals at the 2004 Athens Olympics and four medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, earning gold medals once each in Athens and Beijing. According to CNN, out of the total eight Olympic medals won by Zimbabwe, seven were earned by her. The AP described her as "the athlete with the most Olympic medals in Africa."
Building on her success as an athlete, Coventry joined the IOC Athletes' Commission in 2012 and was named to the IOC Executive Board in 2023. In 2018, she was appointed Minister of Sports by President Emerson Mnangagwa. However, according to the AP, Mnangagwa and the President are figures who served as vice presidents during the regime of former President Robert Mugabe, who was known as a dictator, and his government has also been criticized for suppressing freedoms and stifling dissent.
◇ "Transgender athletes" and "political balance"... IOC faces numerous challenges
Under Coventry's leadership, the IOC faces various challenges. First, following the controversy over transgender participation in women's boxing at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the IOC is under pressure to establish policies regarding the participation of transgender athletes in the Olympics. Issues related to doping and the participation of Russian athletes due to the invasion of Ukraine are also major agenda items.
The IOC's financial issues are also an important challenge to address. The IOC has secured broadcasting and sponsorship contracts worth billions of dollars over the next decade, but several major sponsors are withdrawing after the Paris Olympics, raising concerns that the IOC's business model is not adapting to the changing times.
Coventry will officially take office as IOC chairperson starting in June. Her first major event will be the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics to be held in Italy next year, with about 11 months remaining until the opening.
According to CNN, Coventry said, "This result shows that the IOC has truly evolved into an organization that values global perspectives and diversity. I will maintain this direction over the next eight years," adding that she wants to make sports a bridge between nations and cultures, a source of hope, and a force for good.
She also committed to addressing inequality in sports, stating, "I will strengthen women's sports by protecting female athletes and providing equal opportunities for women."