By GRAHAM DUNBAR, AP Sports Writer
MILAN (AP) — Change is coming to the Olympic program of sports and events and it is going to be uncomfortable for some, IOC president Kirsty Coventry cautioned on Tuesday.
In a keynote speech before her first Olympic Games as its first female leader in its 130-year history, Coventry detailed a defining theme of her presidency.
Coventry set in motion last June a review of more than 450 medal events organized by more than 40 sports federations at the Summer and Winter Games.
“We have to be honest about what works and sometimes more importantly what doesn’t,” she said at the International Olympic Committee annual meeting ahead of the Milan Cortina Olympics opening on Friday.
“It means we have to look our sports, disciplines and events with fresh eyes to make sure we are evolving with our times,” Coventry said. “We will face difficult decisions and conversations — that’s part of change.
“I know these discussions can be, and potentially will be, uncomfortable but they are essential if we are to keep the Games strong for generations to come.”
The Summer Games has chased youth audiences by adding urban sports like skateboarding and 3-on-3 basketball in the past decade, while breakdance got a debut in Paris 18 months ago.
“We have to ensure the Games remain inspiring for young people everywhere,” the two-time Olympic swimming champion said. “That they reflect their values, their sense of authenticity and their search for something genuine.”
Her words suggesting the need for “a balance between tradition and innovation” could leave sports with a century of Olympic history such as modern pentathlon fighting for its future at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“Yes, Paris was a great success but this moment is now in the past,” she said. “It would be dangerous to rest on our laurels.”
The results of the Olympic program review, part of a “Fit For The Future” agenda set by Coventry, are due to be announced later this year.
More sports, less politics
Another theme of Coventry’s emerging presidency is a renewed focus on sports, less so on engaging in politics — though her previous job was sports minister in Zimbabwe’s government.
Coventry’s predecessor Thomas Bach — who sat beside her on Tuesday — relished the political engagement the job can offer and closely aligned the IOC with the United Nations and its agencies. The IOC’s staffing levels and bureaucratic projects rose steadily in Bach’s 12-year leadership.
Bach’s own keynote speech on the eve of the Paris Summer Games was a defense of the multilateral world order that was under attack then and is even more so now.
“We are a sports organization,” Coventry reiterated on Tuesday, calling sports the IOC’s core priority. “We understand politics and we know we don’t operate in a vacuum. But our game is sport.”
Coventry’s first meeting with United States President Donald Trump is eagerly anticipated in Olympic circles as the LA Summer Games approaches.
Olympic values of diversity, inclusion
Coventry has consistently pledged to defend and protect “Olympic values,” which include diversity and inclusion.
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“That diversity is one of our greatest strengths,” she told more than 100 IOC members, praising the breadth and depth of the experiences they bring to Olympic work. “What an extraordinary group we all are.”
Coventry noted the IOC “will continue to support” its projects in health, inclusion and education.
“That is what the world needs from us,” she said. “When we act with empathy and purpose there is no challenge we cannot face. This is the Olympic spirit that defines us.”
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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