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

The ceremony took place in the garden of the Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, inside a makeshift building designed in a similar style to the Grand Palais in Paris. Coventry was given a symbolic golden key to the Olympic House by her immediate predecessor, Thomas Bach, who served the maximum 12-year stint as IOC President. Coventry will be in office for an eight-year first.

“We are guardians of the Olympic movement,” Coventry said in her inauguration address. “And it’s not just about a multi-sport event. It’s a platform to inspire. It’s a platform to change lives. And it’s a platform to bring hope.”

Over her first two days in office, the new IOC President will hold a closed-door session with stakeholders to discuss key issues the body will be addressing in the near future. Leading to her entrance into office, Coventry has addressed questions from a diplomatically savvy angle, stating that it’s the IOC’s duty “to ensure that all athletes can participate at the Games” when asked about trans women competing in women’s events, and deferring to being a mother and accomplished former athlete when discussing equality.

On potential hopes for Africa to host the Olympics, Coventry said the IOC is “working closely with all of these countries that are interested so that they fully understand the magnitude of the Olympic Games” while adding that infrastructure for the All African Games needs to be improved to help any tangible Olympic bids from African countries.

Coventry made history as the first woman and African to be elected president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in March when she won an overall majority in the first round of the election — a surprise result, given that it was expected to be a stiff race. World Athletics President Seb Coe and Juan Antonio Samaranch, son of former IOC President, were 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 Zimbabwean former Olympic 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. However, her campaign was largely defined by the possibility of an African woman becoming the IOC President. Her agenda didn’t reveal any concrete plans to center Africa in the Olympic structure, unlike Coe, who 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.”