The presidential race is on for the International Olympic Committee which will announce the list of candidates to succeed current chair Thomas Bach on Monday after the German declined to fulfil a third term as head of the organisation.
It had been long and widely speculated that Bach, who took charge of the Olympic body in 2013 would leave his seat after the Paris 2024 Games and that current World Athletics president Sebastien Core would be the best bet to take over, but the former fencer still surprised many with the timing of his announcement to leave office, as he revealed his intentions on the last weekend of Olympic competition.
Since, then, Coe has remained on top of the list of possible successors, but the Briton is far from alone. A growing list of unofficial candidates that could include four women and another five men, among them the son of longtime former IOC president, Juan Antonio Samaranch, has stiffened the competition, with the presidential race kicking off this week.
As the sporting world awaits for the official roster of competitors, only Bach truly knows who might be in line to takeover once he steps down, as aspirants had to send a letter to the current IOC president confirming their decision and later visited the IOC’s Lausanne headquarters for a one-on-one interview. 20 and 24 January 2025 have been set as dates when potential candidates will address the 111 IOC members, who should elect their new president during the organisation’s 143rd Session scheduled from 18 to 21 March in Greece.
Coe’s World Athletics credentials and visible leadership of the London 2012 Olympic bid are a huge plus when considering the potential president’s makeover, but his age remains a concern, as statutes underline the need for the IOC boss to not be over 70 years old and the Britton is currently 67.
While his relationship with Bach is not what it used to be after World Athletics promoted independent initiatives like awarding prize-money in the Olympics, a letter sent by the IOC Ethics Committee to its 111 members was released on Wednesday making it clear that he would need two exemptions from his peers to run for office.
The rules also pose a problem for Samaranch, who turns 65 in November, Spanish outlet Relevo points out. An exemption to extend membership for another four years is possible, so the eventual Spanish president would rule for only eight years, with no chance of being re-elected for four, as was the case with Jacques Rogge (2001-2013) and Bach (2013-2025). As for Coe, even with a possible four-year extension he would still be over 74 years old before completing his term, which expires in 2033.
The letter, who The Associated Press claim to have seen, emphasised that candidates must be IOC members “on election day and during the entire duration of their term as IOC President.” Coe’s IOC membership depends on his role at World Athletics, which he must vacate in 2027 after serving 12 years, complicating his eligibility. The new rules were signed by ethics commission chair Ban Ki Moon and further noted, “The charter makes no exceptions for the president, who is an IOC member under the same conditions as all the other members.”
The hope among many is that either Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry, Aruba’s Nicole Hoevertsz or Morocco’s Nawal El Moutawakel step in and make a clean break from a male-dominated past, possibly becoming the first woman to rule the IOC. Some insiders also mentioned the possibility of South African Caster Semenya, the former track star who was involved in a gender row, the ramifications of which are still being settled in court; but she has kept a low profile since retiring from sport.
Another candidate who seems to have the current boss’ backing is France’s David Lappartient, President of the International Cycling Union (UCI), who prominently figured alongside Bach in many Paris 2024 events, while Prince Feisal al Hussein of Jordan and Morinari Watanabe, the Japanese President of the International Gymnastics Federation are among the names that have been thrown in the mix; as has Chile’s Neven Ilic, the president of Panamerican Sports.
Bach laid out plans for new elections in August and explained he would stay on until 24 June to oversee a smooth transition. “In order to safeguard the credibility of the IOC we all, and in particular I as your president, have to respect the highest standards of good governance we have set for ourselves,” he stated.
Over its 130-year history, the IOC has had nine presidents, all of whom have been men, with none hailing from Africa, Asia, or Latin America.
