Kirsty Coventry became the first woman and first African to be elected president of the International Olympic Committee on Thursday and set her sights on confronting the dual unpredictability of geopolitical intrigue and US president Donald Trump.
The 41-year-old two-time Olympic swimming champion from Zimbabwe is the youngest person to hold the most powerful position in sports governance.
“This is an extraordinary moment,” said Coventry, the sports minister in her native Zimbabwe.
“As a nine-year-old girl I never thought that I would be standing up here one day, getting to give back to this incredible movement of ours.”
Coventry faces enormous challenges, such as dealing with Trump in the run-up to Los Angeles hosting the 2028 Summer Games.
She said “communication will be key” with the US leader.
“I have been dealing with, let’s say, difficult men in high positions since I was 20 years old,” said Coventry, confident Trump would put all his weight behind the staging of the 2028 showpiece.
“My firm belief is that President Trump is a huge lover of sports, he will want these games to be significant, he will want them to be a success.”
Coventry added that on the thorny issue of transgender athletes — Trump has said there are only two genders, male and female — the IOC would stand its ground.
“So in terms of Donald Trump, again, it’s going to take communication. As I just said, we’re going to create a task force that’s going to look at the transgender issue and the protection of the female category,” she said.
She said a decision would be made “collectively” with the international federations.
“That decision will be made very clear and we won’t move from that decision.”
Another major issue on her agenda is the question of whether to allow Russia to return to the Olympic fold.
In Paris last year Russian athletes had to compete under a neutral banner, after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Coventry on her election, saying it was “proof of your high authority in the sporting world”, while sports minister Mikhail Degtyaryov said on Telegram he hoped it would lead “to Russia returning to the Olympic podium”.
Coventry was thought to be in a tight-run race with IOC veteran Juan Antonio Samaranch Junior and World Athletics president Sebastian Coe for the top job.
However, to general surprise the race was decided in the first round of voting.
Coventry received 49 of the 97 votes possible, with Samaranch obtaining 28 and Coe third with a humbling eight votes.
Samaranch, 65, was bidding to emulate his father of the same name who led the Olympic movement for 21 years and 68-year-old World Athletics president Coe was seeking to become the first Briton.
The other four candidates failed to garner more than four votes each.
Samaranch Junior, a polished performer who is IOC vice-president, congratulated Coventry and said he “was not going anywhere.”
“It is very good news, the IOC is moving into the future, she has so much support from the membership, we will all walk behind her,” he said.
Outgoing IOC president Thomas Bach appeared to view Coe as the disruptor candidate, which is perhaps surprising given many would view him as an establishment figure.
His low score will be a bitter blow to the two-time 1,500 metres Olympic champion and organiser of the 2012 London Games.
Coe took the dashing of his dream on the chin. Asked if it had been a clean fight, he replied: “It was an election.”
“I am really pleased for Kirsty, it is really good there is an athlete at the top of the organisation,” Coe added.
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