New International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry faces high expectations

Zimbabwean athlete Kirsty Coventry is facing great expectations after her official inauguration as the 10th president of the International Olympic Committee on 23 June 2025.

At 41 years old, she becomes the first woman, the first African and the youngest person to hold this position. 

Members of the Olympic movement "are the guardians of this incredible platform", Coventry said in her inauguration speech.

"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."

The achievement has sparked a sense of pride in her home country, but the former Olympic swimming champion will have to tackle major sporting, social and geopolitical challenges. 

"Things like the 'woke movement', the inclusion agenda, the transgender athletes issue that's burning right now" are on the table, according to Zimbabwean sports analyst Barry Manandi.

The inclusion of transgender athletes in the Olympics has been widely discussed following the controversy aroung Algerian boxer Imane Khelif during the 2024 Games.

Khelif - who does not identify as transgender - was allowed to compete in the Paris Olympics. She had previously been disqualifed from the 2023 World Boxing Championships after allegedly failing a gender eligibility test.

The IOC should take "a leading role" on gender eligibility criteria for athletes, Coventry said during her first meeting as the Committee's president last week.

She said the Committee would set up a a taskforce of scientists and international federations to a find a new policy.

“There was overwhelming support that we should protect the female category", Coventry said. The IOC had previously let the governing bodies of individual sports establish their own rules.

Three known transgender or nonbinary athletes competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics, out of 10,500 participants.

Coventry's election also sparked hope that regions like Africa and the Middle East - that have yet to host the Summer or Winter Olympics - would be brought more into the light.

Coventry will have to acknowledge demands for more transparency and participation in the IOC’s decision-making process.  

She paused the hosting contest for the 2036 Summer Olympics on Thursday, in the first major decision of her presidency. 

Geopolitical challenges also await the new IOC president, with the United States hosting the 2028 Olympics.

"The geopolitics around the United States is not aiding, because there's a lot of turmoil in the world at the moment", Manandi said.

"She's got a big job in ensuring that the Olympic movement is seen as agnostic, sitting in the middle, and a way of celebrating talent."