Kirsty Coventry became the first woman and first African to be elected president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Thursday, saying it was an “extraordinary moment”.
The 41-year-old two-time Olympic swimming champion from Zimbabwe is also the youngest person ever to hold the most powerful position in sports governance.
“It is a really powerful signal we are truly global and evolved into an organisation open to diversity,” said Coventry, who was only the second woman to run for the post.
Coventry, the Zimbabwean sports minister, is a close ally of German Thomas Bach, who steps down as IOC chief after 12 years.
“This is an extraordinary moment. 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 said.
“This is not just a huge honour but it is a reminder to every single one of you that I will lead this organisation with so much pride, with the values at the core and I will make all of you very, very proud and, I hope, extremely confident in the decision you’ve taken today.
Yuri Michaud
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