Kirsty Coventry Emerges as First Woman and African to Head International Olympic Committee

Kirsty Coventry has made history as the first woman and African to be elected the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The former Olympian won an overall majority in the first round of the election, a surprise result as it was expected to be a stiff race, with World Athletics President Seb Coe and an IOC vice-president Juan Antonio Samaranch, son of the former IOC President of the same name, considered strong frontrunners.

“This is not just a huge honor, but it is a reminder of my commitment to every single one of you that I will lead this organization with so much pride,” the former Zimbabwean swimmer said after her win. “And I will make all of you very, very proud and hopefully extremely confident in the decision you’ve taken today.”

In 2018, Coventry was elected the chairperson of the IOC Athletes’ Commission, a position she has held since – and will now have to vacate for the IOC presidency. A year later, in 2019, she was appointed Zimbabwe’s Minister of Youth, Sports, Arts and Recreation, and she’s remained in office since.

Coventry is arguably Africa’s greatest Olympian, with an unequaled haul of seven medals between the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2004, she won gold in the women’s 200m backstroke event, a title she defended four years later. In 2008, she set world records in the 100m and 200m backstroke events in Beijing.

Coventry’s election could be momentous for Africa. While her campaign was largely defined by the possibility of an African woman becoming the IOC President, her agenda did not reveal any concrete plans to center Africa in the Olympic structure. Coe, on the other hand, made it public that hosting an Olympic game on the continent would be an utmost priority if he were elected.

Coventry focused on athlete welfare while campaigning: “We need to find more ways of directly impacting and getting revenue for athletes before they become Olympians,” she said. “That is generally the toughest [thing] most athletes find…in my journey, it was easy to get sponsorship once I’d won a medal. It was getting to that medal that was tough.”

Kirsty Coventry will take office on June 23, coinciding with this year’s Olympic Day celebrations.