Latest news with #OlympicDay
Qatar Tribune
12-05-2025
- Sport
- Qatar Tribune
Sheikh Joaan meets IOC president-elect Kirsty Coventry as Olympic leadership transitions toward a new era
Tribune News Network Kuwait City His Excellency Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) and Senior Vice President of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC), on Monday met with Kirsty Coventry, President Elect of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), during the 45th General Assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia in Kuwait. The meeting came at a significant moment for the Olympic Movement, as Coventry prepares to assume the IOC presidency on June 23, 2025, coinciding with Olympic Day. She will succeed Dr. Thomas Bach and become the first woman and the first African to lead the IOC in its 131-year history. During the meeting, His Excellency congratulated President Elect Coventry on her election and reiterated QOC's support for her vision and leadership. Discussions addressed the future of Olympic governance, the evolving role of National Olympic Committees (NOCs), and the importance of ensuring the Olympic Movement continues to respond to global challenges with transparency, inclusion, and athlete focused leadership. Sheikh Joaan emphasized the value of continued collaboration between the IOC, ANOC, and NOCs, particularly in areas such as institutional development, athlete support, and the broader role of sport in advancing social and regional cooperation. He reaffirmed Qatar's readiness to contribute meaningfully to this shared mission through strong partnerships and continued engagement.
Washington Post
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
After historic Olympic election comes leadership issues for IOC president Kirsty Coventry
COSTA NAVARINO, Greece — After enjoying a stunning election win comes the sober business of leading the International Olympic Committee for Kirsty Coventry. The first woman president elected in the IOC's 131-year history began Friday in a breakfast meeting with Thomas Bach to start their transition. The formal handover is on Olympic Day, June 23.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
After historic Olympic election comes leadership issues for IOC president Kirsty Coventry
COSTA NAVARINO, Greece (AP) — After enjoying a stunning election win comes the sober business of leading the International Olympic Committee for Kirsty Coventry. The first woman president elected in the IOC's 131-year history began Friday in a breakfast meeting with Thomas Bach to start their transition. The formal handover is on Olympic Day, June 23. They agreed Coventry will take precedence in major IOC decisions in the next three months. The 41-year-old sports minister of Zimbabwe will soon resign her government position and plans to move with her family in April to the Olympic home city, Lausanne in Switzerland. Here's a look at some of the issues ahead: Equality for women Coventry's victory is the biggest statement of Bach's consistent policies to promote women in Olympic sports and politics. Can the next layer below the IOC — governing bodies of Olympic sports, national Olympic committees — also make progress? 'You realize that there is still a lot to do,' Bach said on Friday. He noted that from next month just one of those sports will have a woman president: IOC member Petra Sörling in table tennis. Coventry has pledged to protect women's sports and athletes. She explained on Friday how as the sports minister in Zimbabwe she removed the national soccer federation's board after women referees reported being sexually harassed. It helped to push FIFA to suspend Zimbabwean soccer citing government interference in the sport and she has no regret. 'There are certain things close to my heart that I will never tolerate,' she said. Coventry wants the IOC to take 'more of a leading role' on gender eligibility and will create a taskforce to analyze the issue. The newly recognized World Boxing body, which was not involved in the Paris Olympics, is separately updating its rules this year. India's ambition A win for Coventry looks favorable toward being an ultimate victory for India and its influential IOC member Nita Ambani. The two women are reportedly close. The Ambani family, the richest in Asia, hosted the IOC annual meeting in 2023 in Mumbai that promoted ambitions for India to host the Summer Games. A key decision for the Coventry-led IOC is finding a host for 2036. One rival to India is Qatar, whose ruling Emir has been an IOC member for 24 years, and which has been overlooked three times before. An announcement expected soon is to confirm India's first top-tier Olympic sponsorship that was all but promised last August in Paris. There, Ambani hosted a hospitality house to promote Indian culture and sports. There is no set timetable for a decision on 2036. Bach's signature policy on choosing hosts ended an era of blockbuster campaigns and contested votes. Now, a favored bid that effectively and discreetly lobbies the IOC can be fast-tracked into exclusive negotiations. Athlete benefits It is unclear how and when athletes might get a better deal within the IOC's strict commercial rules. They have long protected exclusivity for rights-holding Olympic broadcasters and sponsors. One of Coventry's beaten election rivals, Sebastian Coe, leads World Athletics. It broke an Olympic taboo by paying $50,000 prize money for track and field champions in Paris last year. In Los Angeles in 2028, silver and bronze medalists also will be rewarded. Coe said his election pledges for athletes would include 'sharing their data, giving them better access to sponsorships, and being more liberal, and making sure the (Olympic) brand was more accessible to them.' The election runner-up, Juan Antonio Samaranch, promised letting athletes use clips of their Olympic performances and help them be social media influencers. Coventry did not have those kinds of ideas in her election platform, nor advanced them when she represented athletes on the IOC executive board from 2018-21. However, she pledged to work with election rivals to see which of their policies can make progress. Russia return? There is no obvious path for the IOC to lift its suspension of Russia's Olympic body while four regional sports councils in eastern Ukraine remain under Russian control. Still, Vladimir Putin is already working on the new IOC president, offering 'sincere congratulations' on her win. 'The results of the vote convincingly attest to your high authority in the sporting world and the recognition of your outstanding personal achievements,' read a statement to Coventry from the Kremlin. The 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Games open next February with the IOC excluding Russia from team sports — including Putin's favorite ice hockey — since the invasion of Ukraine. Individual Russian athletes could compete in Paris last year if they passed vetting as neutrals. Future presidents? The next IOC leadership election is in 2033, though the next vacancy with a contested race could be 12 years away in 2037. Coventry would be only 53 on reaching her term limit. Projecting far into the Olympic future, Tony Estanguet rejoined the IOC membership on Friday aged 46. He has clear potential after organizing the successful Paris Olympics. If Coventry's successor is to be a woman, Princess Reema Bandar al Saud could contend. She has been Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States since 2019 and joined the IOC one year later. ___ AP Olympics at
Associated Press
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
After historic Olympic election comes leadership issues for IOC president Kirsty Coventry
COSTA NAVARINO, Greece (AP) — After enjoying a stunning election win comes the sober business of leading the International Olympic Committee for Kirsty Coventry. The first woman president elected in the IOC's 131-year history began Friday in a breakfast meeting with Thomas Bach to start their transition. The formal handover is on Olympic Day, June 23. They agreed Coventry will take precedence in major IOC decisions in the next three months. The 41-year-old sports minister of Zimbabwe will soon resign her government position and plans to move with her family in April to the Olympic home city, Lausanne in Switzerland. Here's a look at some of the issues ahead: Equality for women Coventry's victory is the biggest statement of Bach's consistent policies to promote women in Olympic sports and politics. Can the next layer below the IOC — governing bodies of Olympic sports, national Olympic committees — also make progress? 'You realize that there is still a lot to do,' Bach said on Friday. He noted that from next month just one of those sports will have a woman president: IOC member Petra Sörling in table tennis. Coventry has pledged to protect women's sports and athletes. She explained on Friday how as the sports minister in Zimbabwe she removed the national soccer federation's board after women referees reported being sexually harassed. It helped to push FIFA to suspend Zimbabwean soccer citing government interference in the sport and she has no regret. 'There are certain things close to my heart that I will never tolerate,' she said. Coventry wants the IOC to take 'more of a leading role' on gender eligibility and will create a taskforce to analyze the issue. The newly recognized World Boxing body, which was not involved in the Paris Olympics, is separately updating its rules this year. India's ambition A win for Coventry looks favorable toward being an ultimate victory for India and its influential IOC member Nita Ambani. The two women are reportedly close. The Ambani family, the richest in Asia, hosted the IOC annual meeting in 2023 in Mumbai that promoted ambitions for India to host the Summer Games. A key decision for the Coventry-led IOC is finding a host for 2036. One rival to India is Qatar, whose ruling Emir has been an IOC member for 24 years, and which has been overlooked three times before. An announcement expected soon is to confirm India's first top-tier Olympic sponsorship that was all but promised last August in Paris. There, Ambani hosted a hospitality house to promote Indian culture and sports. There is no set timetable for a decision on 2036. Bach's signature policy on choosing hosts ended an era of blockbuster campaigns and contested votes. Now, a favored bid that effectively and discreetly lobbies the IOC can be fast-tracked into exclusive negotiations. Athlete benefits It is unclear how and when athletes might get a better deal within the IOC's strict commercial rules. They have long protected exclusivity for rights-holding Olympic broadcasters and sponsors. One of Coventry's beaten election rivals, Sebastian Coe, leads World Athletics. It broke an Olympic taboo by paying $50,000 prize money for track and field champions in Paris last year. In Los Angeles in 2028, silver and bronze medalists also will be rewarded. Coe said his election pledges for athletes would include 'sharing their data, giving them better access to sponsorships, and being more liberal, and making sure the (Olympic) brand was more accessible to them.' The election runner-up, Juan Antonio Samaranch, promised letting athletes use clips of their Olympic performances and help them be social media influencers. Coventry did not have those kinds of ideas in her election platform, nor advanced them when she represented athletes on the IOC executive board from 2018-21. However, she pledged to work with election rivals to see which of their policies can make progress. Russia return? There is no obvious path for the IOC to lift its suspension of Russia's Olympic body while four regional sports councils in eastern Ukraine remain under Russian control. Still, Vladimir Putin is already working on the new IOC president, offering 'sincere congratulations' on her win. 'The results of the vote convincingly attest to your high authority in the sporting world and the recognition of your outstanding personal achievements,' read a statement to Coventry from the Kremlin. The 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Games open next February with the IOC excluding Russia from team sports — including Putin's favorite ice hockey — since the invasion of Ukraine. Individual Russian athletes could compete in Paris last year if they passed vetting as neutrals. Future presidents? The next IOC leadership election is in 2033, though the next vacancy with a contested race could be 12 years away in 2037. Coventry would be only 53 on reaching her term limit. Projecting far into the Olympic future, Tony Estanguet rejoined the IOC membership on Friday aged 46. He has clear potential after organizing the successful Paris Olympics. If Coventry's successor is to be a woman, Princess Reema Bandar al Saud could contend. She has been Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States since 2019 and joined the IOC one year later.
Saudi Gazette
21-03-2025
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry becomes first female IOC president
LAUSANNE — Kirsty Coventry has been elected president of the International Olympic Committee and becomes the first woman and first African to get arguably the biggest job in global sports. The Zimbabwe sports minister and two-time Olympic swimming gold medallist bagged a stunning first-round win in the seven-candidate contest after voting by nearly 100 of her colleagues in the IOC membership race on Thursday. She gets an eight-year mandate into 2033. It was the most open and hard-to-call IOC presidential election in decades with no clear front-runner before the vote. Many predicted an absolute majority could take several rounds of votes to secure. Coventry's win also was a victory for outgoing IOC president Thomas Bach, who has long been seen as promoting her as his successor. He did not use his right to vote. "I will make all of you very, very proud and hopefully extremely confident in the decision you have taken," Coventry said in her acceptance speech. "Now we have got some work together."Walking to the podium, she was congratulated and kissed on both cheeks by Juan Antonio Samaranch, who was her expected closest rival in the in the race were four presidents of sports governing bodies: Track and field's Sebastian Coe, skiing's Johan Eliasch, cycling's David Lappartient, and gymnastics' Morinari contending was Prince Feisal al Hussein of will formally replace her mentor Bach on 23 June, officially Olympic Day, as the 10th IOC president in its 131-year history. Bach reached the maximum 12 years in challenges for the 41-year-old 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 US President Donald IOC will also need to find a host for the 2036 Summer Games which could go to India or a country in the Middle East. — Euronews
