"VAN" (Sports Desk - 29.10.2025) :: After four months in office as the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Kirsty Coventry is “extremely positive” about her initial discussions with International Federations (IFs) regarding the way forward.
“I'm really extremely positive and very excited about all the feedback, because with just as many challenges that the International Federations have acknowledged, they've also acknowledged all the opportunities that are coming with it,” Coventry said in her keynote address at the IF Forum on Monday at the Olympic Museum.
“It’s not all going to be easy. We're not always going to agree, but we all do believe that there does need to be some change made,” she added.
SHARED CHALLENGES The IOC honorary president, Thomas Bach, was a special guest at this year’s IF Forum, an annual event - organised by SportAccord - that brings international sports leaders together to address shared challenges, discuss best practices and boost collaboration in an ever-changing landscape.
The three-day event is taking place from 27-29 October, under the theme: The New Global Reality in Sport: IFs in a world that refuses to stand still.
FIT FOR THE FUTURE Since taking the helm of the Olympic movement, Coventry, who won seven Olympic medals in swimming for Zimbabwe, including two golds, has been spearheading a “Fit for the Future” process, which has produced several working groups focused on some of the burning issues of the organisation. And she has continued to collect ideas - also from athletes - that can “help shape the Olympic movement”.
“Having platforms like the IF Forum allows for us to really stretch the imagination, to stretch the boundaries, to look at things in a new way. What does this Olympic programme look like? What should it look like? What disciplines? Which sports? Conversations that I believe will make us better. And will make us more relevant.”
WORKING TOGETHER Coventry recalled attending the IF Forum for the first time as the chair of the IOC Athletes Commission. While it was an overwhelming occasion for her at the time “having all the big discussions with the presidents of the federations” she quickly realised that everyone in that room had the same purpose: “to ensure that our sports remain relevant, that we ensure to create platforms for athletes to realise their hopes, their dreams, and to be able to live those dreams and those hopes.”
Coventry added: “We have a lot of turbulent times happening in our world today. And we are faced with many, many challenges and obstacles. And we are only going to be able to overcome these challenges and obstacles if we work together.”
ENGAGING THE YOUNG GENERATION For Coventry, engaging the young generation is at the core of her leadership. “Because just like a family, we, I hope, would always be trying to make decisions for the betterment and the strength of the family. We want things to be better for our children and our children's children," she explained. "And we want the next generation to be able to have faith in who we are. They have to trust us. They have to understand the policies we're putting in place. We have to show transparency in how we're making decisions and why we're making decisions.
GREATER EXPECTATION “And we've all been doing a really good job, and now we need to do even more. There's an even greater expectation from the younger generation today looking at us that don't always believe in the institutional values of sport or democracy. All of these different categories of life are being challenged daily.
“And we have to find ways to ensure that sport remains neutral. But above anything else, it remains the platform for young people to believe that life could be better.”
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG A recent licensing agreement featuring Sonic the Hedgehog alongside the Olympic rings is a reflection of the new strides the IOC is taking to reach new audiences.
“We can't sit back and think, oh, we're the Olympic movement, and we're just going to keep doing what we're doing, and we're not going to embrace anything new. Because, again, it comes back down to the younger generation. And they expect a lot of us. And that's exciting. I think that's a challenge, yes. But it's also really exciting. It's exciting to be challenged by that.
“I want my six-year-old to get excited about the Olympic Games. And I was slightly complaining to NBC the other day that they've made my life really difficult. Why? Because when my six-year-old went back to Zimbabwe after being in Paris, watching all these incredible athletes and meeting most of these athletes, she went back and told her teacher and her classmates how she got to meet Snoop Dogg. I'm like, I'm sorry, what? How about Simone Biles and Leon Marchand? What about all these other athletes?
FINDING UNIQUE WAYS “So, again, we have to ensure that we're engaging. And we're engaging in a way that resonates with them. I like Snoop Dogg. He was really cool. And he has a great children's album. But I would have much preferred my six-year-old to have gone back and spoken about all the incredible athletes.
“That tells you about something that for her resonated. So, again, I think we have to find these unique ways, and Sonic is going to be able to do that with us and reach out to a generation that is hopefully going to be leading our organisation in a few years.”
IF FORUM 2025 With a line up of speakers and panellists comprising International Federation leaders, athletes and independent experts, the IF Forum will cover discussions around commercial strategies in an increasingly competitive landscape, sustainable investment in women’s sport, staying relevant beyond major event cycles and building resilience and unity in “an age of global disruption”.
“We're at least at a point right now where we're willing to talk about it. The next step will be a little bit harder, it will be the implementing and the embracing,” said President Coventry
SPORTACCORD PRESIDENT ERDENER ON SHARED GOALS SportAccord President Prof. Dr. Ugur Erdener said: “The IF Forum 2025 comes at a critical moment when sport is entering a transformative era. The new global reality in sport brings global challenges that we all must face. But we also believe this era creates significant opportunities for growth.
“Collaboration and dialogue serve to strengthen sport. This is a belief we at Sportaccord share with the IOC. This Forum has become a key moment for the IFs; a special place for leaders to meet, share their knowledge and learn from each other. This year it serves as timely reminder that our response to challenges is always stronger when we face them together.”
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