After twelve years, Thomas Bach is at the head of the IOC from the office of president. A woman and six men apply for the successor. On Thursday (March 18, 2025), the IOC members decide in an elaborate election process.
Six candidates and a candidate apply for the successor of IOC President Thomas Bach and thus to lead the International Olympic Committee. With the long-standing Bach confidante Kirsty Coventry Only one woman applies to the post. Four of the six men starting for election are at the top of international sports associations. Sportschau.de introduces the candidate and calls the three favorites:
Kirsty Coventry (41), Zimbabwe
The former swimmer, who won Olympiagold in 2004 and 2008, is the only woman who stands for election. Coventry is a sports minister in her home country Zimbabwe and is the chairwoman of the coordination commission of the 2032 Summer Olympics 2032 in Brisbane (Australia).
IOC member has been the Olympionic since 2013. First as part of the athlete representative and since 2021 as a personal member. The 41-year-old is currently also sitting in the IOC Executive and has a tight connection to IOC President Thomas Bach. That makes her a favorite for the choice.
Marcus Tepper, Sportschau, 17.03.2025 12:09 p.m.
Sebastian Coe (67), Great Britain
Sebastian Coe was also an Olympic champion as an athlete. In 1980 and 1984 he won gold over 1,500 meters. He was later chairman of the 2012 Olympic Games in London. In 2015 he was at the top of the International World Athletics Association “World Athletics” chosen.
Coe was recently considered in many questions – such as the position opposite Russia – as the adversary by Thomas Bach. His choice would therefore be a break with his era. As a possible president, Coe wants to strengthen more participation by the IOC members and athletes.
Most recently, he already got together with the IOC when the World Athletics Association paid bonuses for Olympic medals to its athletes. The Briton is still one of the favorites in the choice.
Christine Heuer, Sportschau, 03/17/2025 11:14 a.m.
Juan Antonio Samaranch jr. (65), Spain
The son of long-time IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch (1980-2001) has many connections within the IOC and is therefore a serious candidate for the office of president. Samaranch junior has been a member of the IOC since 2001 and was jointly responsible for the Olympic Winter Games from Beijing 2022.
In the event of an election victory, he would have all IOC members vote on the allocation of the Olympic Games. The Executive Committee only decided in Bach’s term. In the event of an election victory, an extension of his IOC membership would have to be requested by 2033 for the Spaniard, since he reached the age limit for IOC members of 70 years in 2029. The same applies to COE.
Hans-Günther Kellner, Sportschau, 17.03.2025 12:23 p.m.
David Lappartient (51), France
The head of the Radsport World Association (UCI) and the President of the National Olympic Committee of France has been a member of the IOC since 2022 due to its office at UCI.
According to Kirsty Coventry, the 51-year-old is the second youngest candidate and currently chairman of the E-sports-Commission of the IOC. Most recently, he was involved in the awarding of the Olympic Games in E-Sport in Saudi Arabia.
During the Summer Olympics in Paris last year, he was often seen alongside IOC President Thomas Bach. Lapp -like outsider opportunities are assigned.
Feisal Al Hussein (61), Jordan
The President of the National Olympic Committee of Jordan and a member of the Jordanian royal family has been a member of the IOC since 2010. Al Hussein can look back on a sporty career in struggles and rally sports. He has been a member of the IOC’s executive committee since 2019. At the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games, he was part of the coordination commission. He is attributed to minimal opportunities for the election victory.
Johan Eliasch (63), Sweden/Great Britain
The biggest surprise on the list of candidates is Johan Eliasch. The President of the International Ski Association FIS was once again elected to the head of the association in 2022, although important skinations such as Austria or Germany lie in the clinch about the central marketing of the alpine World Cup. The Swede native with a Britschem passport is also a billion dollar owner of the ski manufacturer “Head“.
Eliasch has only been a member of the IOC since this year and thus the “freshest” official in the ranks of the IOC. He is therefore granted maximum outsider opportunities.
Morinari Watanabe (66), Japan
The seventh applicant to the office of IOC President is the boss of the International Gymnastics Association (FIG) Morinari Watanabe. He has been a member of the IOC since 2018 and could remain so until 2028, provided that he strives for a third term at the head of the fig. His membership in the IOC is therefore not secured over the entire period of a possible presidency, as with Lappartment, Coe and Eliasch.
Watanabe’s reform plans sound revolutionary: he wants the Olympic Games on five continents at the same time and more grassroots democracy in the IOC. An election victory Watanabes is also extremely unlikely.
Thorsten Iffland, Sportschau, March 18, 2025 12:15 p.m.
Absolute majority required for the election
Bach’s successor will initially be elected to office for eight years in the course of the currently running 144th IOC session in Greece and will take the office on June 24, 2025. After the first period, an extension is possible by four more years.
The choice runs as follows: The new president needs the absolute majority of the votes. There can be several electoral courses for this, before each further ballot the candidate is excluded with the fewest votes. The incumbent President Bach does without his right to vote and leads the choice, but he has the opportunity to determine his successor in the last ballot with two tensions.
The choice is not transmitted live, electronic devices in the hall are not allowed. The candidates themselves and their compatriots in the IOC are also excluded from voting.