Kirsty Coventry has been elected the 10th President of the International Olympic Committee.

The 41-year-old Zimbabwean was chosen in a secret ballot of seven candidates at the 144th IOC Session being held in Costa Navarino, Greece, on Thursday (20 March), for an eight-year term of office.

President-elect Coventry replaces outgoing President Thomas Bach, who was first elected in 2013 and re-elected in 2021. She received 49 votes in the first round, exactly the number required for a majority from the 97 votes cast.

She will be the first woman and the first African to serve as IOC President. President-elect Coventry will assume office after the handover from President Bach on Olympic Day, 23 June.

The IOC Session also voted the change of status of IOC member Mr. Mehrez Boussayene. The 1st Vice – President of the International Committee of Mediterranean Games from membership related to a function within an NOC or a Continental Association of NOCs changed to Independent Individual.

Former Hellenic Olympic President and EOC President Spyros Capralos has been elected to the IOC Executive Board (EB) as the member representing National Olympic Committees (NOCs). President Capralos, an IOC Member since 2019, will serve a four-year term from 2025 to 2029.