Groundbreaking but controversial - new IOC president Coventry

Kirsty Coventry will become the first woman to hold the most powerful role in sport, having been elected the 10th International Olympic Committee (IOC) president at a meeting in Greece.

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The Zimbabwean sports minis- ter and double Olympic swimming champion is also the first African and, at the age of 41, the youngest person to take up the position. But her victory is controversial as well as groundbreaking.

Despite predictions of a close race between the seven candidates and expectations of multiple rounds of voting, Coventry secured an overall majority of the secret ballot after just one round, winning 49 votes out of a possible 97.

Lord Coe meanwhile - the high- est profile candidate with a CV that boasts overseeing London 2012 and running World Athletics - could only muster a meagre eight votes.

A year after Paris 2024 set a milestone as the first Olympics to achieve full gender parity, Coventry’s triumph sends a powerful message.

Up until 1981 there were no female members of the IOC and Coventry is only the second woman to run for the presidency.

Her background and relative youth also helps the IOC project a progressive and diverse image at a time when it is trying to ensure the Games remain relevant to younger generations.

As well as being a seven-time Olympic medallist, Coventry has been an IOC member since 2013. But the nature of her stunning victory - despite a low-key campaign - has led to questions over how it was achieved.