The race for the IOC presidency intensified on March 19, 2025, at Greece’s Costa Navarino resort, where seven candidates, including frontrunners Sebastian Coe, Kirsty Coventry, and Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr., vied to replace Thomas Bach. With over 100 votes to be cast on Thursday at 4 p.m. local time, the election—set against the Ionian Sea—will crown the leader of the $7 billion Olympic empire. Coe faces a tough fight, Coventry eyes history as the potential first female president, and Samaranch Jr aims to echo his father’s legacy, all amid whispers of alliances and multiple voting rounds.
