IOC presidential election LIVE: Seb Coe bids for Olympic throne in fiercely contested seven-way vote
Lord Coe is up against Juan Antonio Samaranch, whose father was IOC president for 21 years, and Zimbabwean former swimmer Kirsty Coventry in a battle for the most powerful post in sport
Seb Coe is bidding to become the most powerful figure in sport today as he runs to succeed Thomas Bach as president of the International Olympic Committee.
The IOC president holds dominion over the Olympic movement and acts as dealmaker and diplomat handling world leaders desperate for the dose of soft power that comes with hosting an Olympic Games.
Lord Coe is one of seven candidates on the ballot paper and he is among the frontrunners alongside Juan Antonio Samaranch – the son of the influential IOC president of the same name between 1980 and 2001 – and the Zimbabwean former swimmer Kirsty Coventry, bidding to become both the first woman and first African to lead the IOC.
The 109 members – a mix of royalty, billionaires, sports executives and Olympians from around the globe – have gathered in the luxury Costa Navarino resort in Greece to cast secret votes. The candidate with the least votes will be eliminated round by round, and a president will be elected once one candidate wins a total majority.
Follow the news and latest updates from the IOC presidential election below.
Election decided in first round
We are now heading back to the Costa Navarino Greece, where we are expected to get the election result very shortly.
Has Kirsty Coventry made history?
If Kirsty Coventry has indeed won this election at the first time of asking, she will mark a major shift from the IOC’s historical leadership.
There have been nine IOC presidents since its inception in 1984, and eight of those have been greying European men. The exception was ex-decathlete Avery Brundage, elected in 1952 (a greying American man).
Coventry would become the first woman and the first African president of the IOC.
Election decided in first round
We continue to wait for the result to be confirmed – it is expected to be announced by president Thomas Bach in around 15 minutes’ time.
If you’re just joining, there has been a shock in Greece today, with one of the seven candidates winning an outright majority in the very first round. We were expecting a number of rounds and a tight contest, but that is not the case, and now we wait to see who has won this election.
Election decided in first round
My immediate thought is that this could be good news for Kirsty Coventry. She was most likely to strike early given her core base of voters was already formed – women, African members and Bach loyalists (Bach has privately backed Coventry to be his successor).
By contrast, Seb Coe and Juan Antonio Samaranch were more likely to prosper in the later rounds, once the European voting bloc – split intially four ways between them, Eliasch and Lappartient – coalesced around one candidate as they were eliminated.
But in the murky world of the IOC, it is impossible to know how the cards have fallen here. We will have to wait and see...
Election decided in first round
Compliance officers are accompanying the current president, Thomas Bach, out of the room and the result will be scrutinised.
Once it is confirmed, Bach will return and announce his successor.
Breaking: Election decided in first round!
Wow – this is a shock. One of the seven candidates has won this election in the very first round, sweeping up more than 50 per cent of the total votes at the first time of asking.
“You have elected a new IOC president,” IOC director general Christophe De Kepper announces. “The session is now suspended.”
And we too are left in suspense...
IOC presidential election – live
IOC director general Christophe De Kepper is whipping through the many rules of this election.
He lists the members who cannot vote in the opening round, who are the members who share a nationality with one of the candidates. So, HRH Princess Anne and Sir Hugh Robertson cannot vote in the first round, because there are British candidates involved (Coe and Eliasch).
Members have an electronic device on their seat and will cast their first vote imminently. Although, for now our friend De Kepper is still talking in slow monotone...
IOC presidential election – live
The secret ballot is set to begin. We should get the first round of results shortly.
A reminder of the seven candidates, below. Coe, Samaranch and Coventry are considered the frontrunners, though Prince Feisal is also a popular character inside the IOC.
- Lord Coe (Britain), 68, president of World Athletics, the Olympics’ biggest sport
- Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr (Spain), 65, an IOC vice-president whose father was the president from 1980 to 2001
- Morinari Watanabe (Japan), 66, president of the International Gymnastics Federation
- Kirsty Coventry (Zimbabwe), 41, decorated Olympic swimmer and minister for sport in Zimbabwe who serves on the IOC’s executive board
- Prince Feisal Al Hussein (Jordan), 61, brother of the King of Jordan who serves on the IOC’s executive board
- David Lappartient (France), 51, president of World Cycling (UCI)
- Johan Eliasch (Britain), 63, president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, the Winter Olympics’ biggest sport.
Election criticised for 'lack of transparency'
This election has been criticised by numerous high-profile figures for its lack of transparency, not least Seb Coe himself.
The election has been kept carefully under wraps with candidates allowed only tightly controlled 15-minute presentations to the membership in Lausanne last month, which were not broadcast publicly or followed up with questions from members. There have been no election debates and candidates have not been allowed to criticise each other’s campaign, while members are forbidden from public endorsements.
Coe said the process needs “more access to the members, more transparency. It has been difficult to engage and I don’t think those are the guiding principles of an election. An election is very important, in one big way, in that it gives people the opportunity to have a conversation. In future, this needs to be a more open and expansive process.”
IOC presidential election – live
Proceedings are set to get going very shortly. Here’s a look inside the room:
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