PuraVida Sports

By Elias Makori in Costa Navarino, Greece

“Mummy, you won!” Kirsty Coventry’s six-year-old daughter celebrated her mother’s sensational hat-trick as the youngest, the first woman and first African President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), elected at the Greek resort of Costa Navarino on Thursday.

“She probably doesn’t know what all this means,” Zimbabwe’s Coventry, 41, a double Olympic swimming champion and mother of two girls, reacted.

Born in Harare on September 16, 1983, Coventry, who is also Zimbabwe’s Sports Minister, stunned the sporting world when she won Thursday’s first round of voting for IOC’s 10^th President.

She will be the first female IOC leader in the Olympic Movement’s 131-year history, a roll started in 1894 when Greek businessman and writer Demetrius Vikelas was elected President.

Coventry warded off six other – male – contestants at the 144^thIOC Session by garnering a majority 49 of the possible 97 votes at the “House of Events” at Costa Navarino’s 321-room Romanos Resort. 

Fit For Royalty

Adjacent to the Ionian Sea in the Navarino Dunes area of Costa Navarino, the prime sustainable destination in the Mediterranean, The Romanos Resort prides itself as theleading resort in Greece with award-winning architecture and uninterrupted views of the coastline with a 18-hole golf course to boot.

The voting took less than 10 minutes. 

The setting was impeccable. 

Fit for royalty.

And, yes, there was royalty present to witness Madame Coventry’s coronation, His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco and Jordan’s Prince Feisal Al Hussein both being among the 97 IOC voting members.

Not even the pedigree of her closest opponent, Spain’s Juan Antonio Samaranch Junior, son of the late former IOC President by the same name, who garnered 28 votes, could stop Coventry’s swim to fame on Thursday.

World Athletics President and Olympic track legend Seb Coe came home third with eight votes as the rest brought up the rear, Frenchman David Lappartient and Japan’s Morinare Watanabe with four each as Swedish-British Johan Eliash and Jordan’s Prince Feisal Al Hussein garnered two apiece.

Low Budget Campaign

Coventry’s campaign was low budget, the swimming legend running a muted public relations machinery with her husband Tyrone Steward reportedly having worked on her manifesto, and a sprinkling of unpaid volunteers rallying the cause.

There was no Zimbabwean journalist following her path to glory here at Costa Navarino.

In fact, there was no African media house represented with Pura Vida Sports Africa the only African outfit here (a clear manifestation of our drive and true commitment to raisingthe bar in African sports journalism). 

“I withhold that for now, because I still need to see some of them… but those who helped me with my campaign know themselves and I truly want to thank them, not just because they helped with this historical win, by they truly believed in me and my vision from the get-go, so I’m grateful to them,” Coventry responded when asked for details of her campaign team.

Inspired by Anita DeFrantz

Fighting off tears of emotion at her celebratory press conference on Thursday evening at the Westin Hotel, one of the two five star hotels (The Romanos being the other) nestled in the opulence of the Costa Navarino Resort that prides itself as “a rare Grecian secret of authentic luxury,” Coventry, aSports Minister in Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Cabinet, paid glowing tribute to American Olympic rower Anita DeFrantz for inspiring her own race to the most powerful seat in global sport.

DeFrantz is the first woman Vice-President of the IOC having been elected in 1997 and serving until 2001, and was the first woman to run for IOC Presidency.

“There have been incredible women that have come before me. One of them (DeFrantz) is sitting in the room today, which I might get emotional about… Anita DeFratz has been a huge inspiration to me and to many women,” Coventry fought back tears of emotion.

“I’m just really proud that I could make her proud. She was the first woman to run for this position and she inspired me. She has been a big mentor of mine since I came into the movement in 2013… It’s significant. I think it will take some time to set in .

“Women like her paved the way for women like me, and I’d like to pave the way for the younger generation, especially because I have two young daughters.”

Family Support System

Coventry spoke about how important family support has been in her road to victory, saying her parents Rob and Lynn would be the first people she would call after getting to her phone,highlighting the importance of family support throughout her six months of campaigns.

“I have actually just picked up my phone… I haven’t had a chance to look at it… I was overwhelmed by all the congratulations from the members and what I’m looking forward to is jumping on the phone with my parents – they will be the first phone call I will be making after this,” the ground-breaking Coventry told the post-victory Press Conference.

“My husband (former manager Tyrone Steward) and I had to make the decision when I was given the job of Minister of Youth, Sports and Arts in Zimbabwe. 

“We knew that would be a full-time commitment, and, from my point of view, I was pregnant with my first daughter – so I think baby girls also bring me luck, apart from being in Greece – and we made a decision that one of us will always have to be available for the kids, and he was able to keep his work online so we really benefitted from that.

“My parents live close by (in Harare) and we have a really strong network that supports us – part of our culture is that it takes a village to raise a child, and we are certainly a couple that does that.”

Coventry was full of praise for her predecessor, Thomas Bach, for leading the IOC flawlessly and setting the stage for a smooth transition.

She takes over on June 23, which is Olympic Day, and will be in office for an eight-year period.

“This is the first in our movement where we have a proper transition. There will be numerous discussions over the next three months, but I’m looking forward to that.

“President Bach has led our organization very well over the last few years. It’s not been easy and there are many difficulties he has overcome… I would have conversations with him on how he decided to tackle those (difficulties) and what advise he could give me for the future.”

A point she re-emphasized at the final session of the IOC gathering here on Friday morning.

Relocating from Harare to Lausanne

“This is the first time in our movement that we will have a full transition… we will take time to go through the full details and look at the decisions ahead of us,” the President-elect said in her first address to the IOC members.

The three-month transition period will see Coventry relocate from her Harare home to the IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

“Right now, I’m going back (to Zimbabwe) to thank everyone and let this sink in with a little bit of an embrace and a hug… but I will be moving to Lausanne,” the President-elect disclosed.

“I will have the conversation with my President in Zimbabwe (Mnangagwa). There is no way I can do both (be IOC President and Sports Minister).

“They (Zimbabwe) have been very supportive of me running in this campaign… while they might be sad that we are parting ways, they will be proud that we are moving into another chapter.”

President Mnangagwa congratulated Coventry on her “historic” election.

“Congratulations to our own Kirsty Coventry on her historic election as the first female and first African President of the IOC,” Mnangagwa posted on his official ‘X’ account @edmnangagwa.

“A proud achievement for Zimbabwe and the continent! Wishing her the greatest of success. #Zimbabwe #IOC#KirstyCoventry,” the President posted.

Shining Light Onto New Regions

The fact that there was no Zimbabwean media at the 144^th IOC session to cover Coventry’s win certainly reflects the huge work ahead she has to push the Olympic agenda on the African continent, especially with Dakar hosting the Youth Olympic Games next year, a question puravidsports.africa put to the President-elect.

“First and foremost, I think Dakar 2026 is, as they have said, gonna be welcoming the world,” she responded.

“I have been chairing that (Coordinating) Commission for the last few years, and I’m really proud and excited of the work that they’re doing. And I know it’s gonna be an incredible time for the world to see who we are, as Africans, and what we mean and what we stand for and how we are willing to embrace everyone. 

“And in terms of the work, there’s always work that we need to do. But this allows this honor that I have been given to serve this movement is going to allow for us to have greater reach into new regions, but also to shine a light onto new regions. 

“And this is part of the uniqueness of the Olympic Movement, the diversity that we all have. And I truly believe that this decision today is showing that universality and that globalness of our movement.”

Paul Tergat’s tribute:

National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) President and Olympic medallist Paul Tergat and Executive Committee Member, rugby legend Humphrey Kayange, were Kenya’s voting IOC members at Thursday’s elections.

Tergat, a former marathon world record holder and two-time Olympic 10,000 metres silver medallist, was beside himself with joy at having elected an African IOC President.

“When history is written, many years to come, hundreds of years to come, it will be written that IOC voted a woman President, and an African, here in Costa Navarino. I’m proud that I was here,” Tergat, whose term at NOC-K runs out next month, said.

Kayange and Tergat sit on the Dakar 2026 IOC Co-ordination Commission.