Kirsty Coventry, the Olympic swimmer from Zimbabwe, was elected president of the International Olympic Committee Thursday becoming the first woman and African to lead the organization in its 131-year history.
Coventry’s election during an IOC meeting at a Greek resort is also a major victory for outgoing IOC president Thomas Bach who hand picked Coventry, 41, to be his successor and had lobbied against the candidacy of Sebastian Coe, president of World Athletics, track and field’s international governing body, and bitter rival of Bach’s.
“Thank you, thank you,” Coventry said to Bach as they embraced moments after he announced her victory.
“This is an extraordinary moment,” Coventry told the IOC members. “As a 9-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.
“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, with the values at its core, and I will make all of you very, very proud and hopefully extremely confident in the decision that you’ve taken today.”
Coventry, competed in five Olympic Games won seven Olympic medals making her the most decorated Olympian from Africa and tying Hungary’s Krisztina Egerszegi for having won the most individual Olympic medals in women’s swimming. American Katie Ledecky has since tied the record.
Coventry also led Auburn to two NCAA titles.
Key challenges for Coventry will be steering the Olympic movement through political and sporting issues toward the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles, including engaging in diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump.