Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe elected as 10th President of IOC
Person in News
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41 year old Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe has been elected as the 10th President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). She defeated six other candidates including the current President of World Athletics Lord Sebastian Coe .
She will succeed Thomas Bach on 23rd June 2025 which is also the Olympic Day.
The current President Thomas Bach will resign as the IOC member and assume the Honorary President for Life of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) position after the completion of his term on 23rd June 2025.
First African and Women to be elected as IOC President
Kirsty Coventry is the first woman and African to be elected as the President of the IOC.
Election to elect a new President of the IOC was held during the 144th IOC Session held in Costa Navarino, Greece, on 20 March 2025.
Kirsty Coventry secured 49 votes out of the 97 votes cast and was declared elected.
Term of the IOC President
The term of the IOC President is eight years. The President is eligible for re-election once for a period of four years.
Thus Kirsty Coventry will be in office till 2033.
About Kirsty Coventry
Kirsty Coventry is a former swimmer who represented Zimbabwe in international sporting events.
A five time Olympian, Kirsty won seven medals - two gold, four silver, one bronze. She won gold at the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Olympics.
She has won golds in the Commonwealth and African Games.
Administrative
Kirsty Coventry is currently the Minister of Sport,Art and Recreation in Zimbabwe, a post she has been holding since 2018.
She was elected as the Vice President of the International Surfing Federation from 2017 to 2024.
She was elected as an IOC Member as a member of the IOC Athletes' Commission in 2013.
She was also elected as the Chair of the IOC Athletes Commission in 2018.
About IOC and its President
The International Olympic Committee was founded in 1894 in Paris, France. Pierre de Coubertin of France is considered to be the father of the modern Olympics.
The IOC organises the Summer and Winter Olympics.
The headquarters of the IOC was later moved from Paris to Lausanne ,Switzerland.
The President of the IOC is elected by the IOC Members.
The IOC members are elected by the IOC and represent the IOC in their respective countries.
Currently Nita Ambani of India is an IOC Member.
Following is the list of Presidents of the IOC.
- Demetrius Vikelas of Greece (1894-1896). He held the office for the shortest period of time.
- Pierre De Coubertin of France (1896- 1925)
- Henri de Baillet-Latour of Belgium(1925- 1942)
- Johannes Sigfrid Edström of Sweden (1946-1952)
- Avery Brundage of the United States of America (1952 to 1972)
- Sir Michael Morris, Lord Killanin of Ireland (1972-1980)
- Juan Antonio Samaranch of Spain (1980- 2001)
- Jacques Rogge of Belgium (2001-2013)
- Thomas Bach of Germany (2013-2025)
- Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe (2025- )
