Kirsty Coventry has become the new president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), replacing Thomas Bach, who led the organization for the past 12 years. This was reported by UNN with reference to Deutsche Welle.
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The ceremony of power transfer took place in Lausanne, Switzerland. During the festivities, the current IOC President Thomas Bach symbolically handed over the key to the organization's headquarters to Coventry.
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The new head of the IOC is Kirsty Coventry, a two-time Olympic swimming champion and Minister of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture of Zimbabwe. She was elected President of the IOC on March 20 at the committee's 144th session in Greece, winning 49 out of 97 votes in the first round.
Coventry became the first woman and simultaneously the first African to head the IOC.
In a comment to Sky News, Coventry criticized the automatic exclusion of states from the Olympics due to international conflicts.
I think that each specific situation needs to be evaluated. What I would like to do is create a task force that will develop certain rules and principles that we, as a movement, could use to make decisions when faced with internal conflicts.
Recall
Against continued war in Ukraine, the IOC suspended the Russian team from participating in the 2024 Paris Olympics. At the same time, some Russian athletes who have not publicly supported the war can compete in a neutral status without a flag and anthem.
In addition, since 2022, the Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has suspended Russian and Belarusian teams from participating in international tournaments. In February 2025, the sanctions were extended: Russians will not participate in competitions until 2026 inclusive.
As Politico emphasizes, Coventry's statements do not mean that the Russian team is guaranteed to perform at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
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The IOC is under pressure to adopt a clear position on aggressors and authoritarian regimes. The participation or suspension of Russia in future Games will remain a test of the new president's principles.
As reported by UNN, in April of this year, the Ukrainian government criticized the intentions of the future head of the IOC, Kirsty Coventry, who advocated for the return of Russians to the Olympic Games. Ukraine calls for preventing Russians from participating in international competitions.