Kirsty Coventry, First Woman and African to Lead IOC

There is always a first time for everything. For Kirsty Coventry (41 years old), a swimmer from Zimbabwe, one of her most valuable first-time experiences was winning a gold medal at the Athens 2004 Olympics. The medal from the women's 200-meter backstroke event was her first gold at the Olympic Games.

At that time, Coventry also won a silver medal in the 100-meter backstroke and a bronze medal in the 200-meter individual medley. This achievement continued at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where Coventry again secured a gold medal in the 200-meter backstroke and three silver medals in the 100-meter backstroke, as well as the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medley.

More than two decades have passed since his first highest achievement, who would have thought that Coventry's "golden" touch still shines in Greece. After winning in Athens, Coventry triumphed again in Pilos. This time, not in a competition as an athlete, but in the election for President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

"Greece seems to be my lucky charm," Coventry said.

Coventry was elected as the 10th President of the IOC in a closed ballot during a session held in Costa Navarino, Pilos, Greece, on Thursday (20/3/2025). Coventry replaces Thomas Bach, who will step down after serving since 2013.

It is my passion to be able to challenge the status quo, to break boundaries.

In the voting, Coventry received 49 votes out of a total of 97 votes cast. This number was sufficient for the Olympian, who has competed in five editions of the Olympics, to win the vote in a single round.

With the election of Coventry for an eight-year term, she becomes the first woman and African to lead the IOC. In the 130 years since the IOC was established, this is the first time a woman and an African have held the highest position of authority. Coventry has successfully broken barriers to once again achieve a first for herself and for the IOC.

Coventry said his election was a strong signal that the IOC was going global and becoming an organization that was welcoming to diversity. He also had two main goals: to disrupt the status quo and to make the Olympics more accessible and relevant to young people.

"It's a passion of mine to be able to challenge the status quo, to push the boundaries," Coventry told the official Olympic website.

Challenging the status quo and breaking down barriers, Coventry said, will allow women to see the future. It will also make them believe that anything is possible.

"We've had great women in previous generations. I've had great women around me my whole life who I'm so grateful for showing me how to never give up on a dream," she said.

In the voting process, Coventry as the only female candidate beat Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. in second place. Samaranch Jr., the Spanish candidate who is the son of former IOC President 1980-2001, Juan Antonio Samaranch, received 28 votes.

Britain's Sebastian Coe, who was considered a front-runner ahead of the vote, came in third with just eight votes. The remaining votes were won by France's David Lappartient, Jordan's Prince Feisal, Sweden's Johan Eliasch and Japan's Morinari Watanabe.

Coventry, Zimbabwe’s most successful Olympian with seven medals, will oversee the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Games for his first time, with less than 11 months until the opening ceremony. Overall, he will face a number of tough challenges in his role.

Moreover, the legacy of the previous president's leadership gave rise to a number of problems, starting from the Russian doping case, a rebellion among several Western democracies over the cost of organizing the Olympics, and the pandemic that forced the Tokyo Olympics to be held without spectators and a year later than scheduled.

Coventry has pressing issues to address early on. The next Olympics, for example, will be held in Los Angeles in 2028, at a time when the United States’ leadership around the world is in the spotlight. There are also important decisions to be made about the rights of transgender athletes and the challenges posed by the climate crisis.

Coventry also inherits the tricky task of maintaining relationships with global sports federations and sponsors while safeguarding the financial stability of the IOC, which relies heavily on multi-billion dollar broadcasting and sponsorship deals. "The IOC has not faced such a troubling geopolitical outlook for many years," said former IOC Marketing Director Michael Payne.

"How the IOC navigates an increasingly fragmented political world, maintains universality, and how the IOC engages with a rapidly changing marketing and broadcasting market," he said.

Still, Coventry has valuable experience and experience in organizational careers. When asked about dealing with President Trump in preparation for the Los Angeles Olympics, Coventry quipped that he has decades of experience dealing with “difficult people in high places.”

The 41-year-old was also quick to respond when asked about whether more needed to be done to protect women's sport following the boxing controversy at the Paris Olympics. "My position is that we will protect the women's category and the women's athletes. I want to work with the international federations. And we will do that by setting up a task force that will look at everything and analyse it," she said.

Coventry has been tested in his efforts to break boundaries, avoid “traps” and rise to the top of his career in Zimbabwe. However, criticism and controversy have also not been free from the journey of the three-time World Swimming gold medallist to the top of the IOC.

One of the criticisms that has been directed at Coventry was when he accepted a cash prize of 100,000 US dollars (around Rp 1.65 billion at the current exchange rate) on state television. This took place at a time when Zimbabweans were suffering from famine due to hyperinflation.

More controversy came in 2018 when Coventry served as Sports Minister in President Emmerson Mnangagwa's cabinet. Mnangagwa's government came under scrutiny for its weak democratic credentials.

The UK government, for example, was among those to impose sanctions in an attempt to push Zimbabwe to respect democratic principles, as Mnangagwa's election victory was marked by a crackdown on civil and political rights.

In that situation, Coventry did not distance himself from Mnangagwa. Quite the opposite. Last year, they were even seen dancing together at a public event when Zimbabwe said it wanted to bid to host the 2027 Cricket World Cup.

Coventry has also faced criticism about his effectiveness as sports minister. Zimbabwe has been banned from hosting national team matches by the Confederation of African Football since 2020 because of unsafe stadiums. That is something Coventry has yet to fix.

Meanwhile, at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Zimbabwe is sending a delegation of 74 people for the nine athletes competing, raising questions about the effectiveness of taxpayers' money.

Regardless, the question that remains is what happens next. Will Coventry shed some light on the organization with its ability to push boundaries? Or will it simply carry on Bach’s legacy? Whatever happens, the next eight years of Coventry’s first will be interesting and challenging. (REUTERS/AFP)