Russia responded Thursday to the election of Kirsty Coventry as the new president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) with statements from its sports minister, Mikhail Degtyarev, and President Vladimir Putin. Both expressed their hope that this election will mark a change in the situation of Russian athletes, who have been excluded from the Olympic Games in recent years.

Russia, excluded from the 2022 Winter Olympics due to its invasion of Ukraine, welcomed Coventry’s election, stressing the need for a “stronger, independent and more prosperous Olympic movement under a new leader, and for Russia to return to the Olympic podium,” Mikhail Degtyarev, Russian sports minister and head of the Russian Olympic Committee, said via Telegram. Degtyarev congratulated Coventry, the first woman and first African to lead the IOC, and praised “her brilliant sports career, Olympic victories, records and contribution to the development of sport.”

For his part, President Vladimir Putin sent his “sincere congratulations” to Coventry. In a letter published by the Kremlin, Putin said, “I am convinced that your unique experience and your interest in the real promotion of noble Olympic ideals will contribute to the success of this position of great responsibility.”

RUSSIAN ATHLETES AT THE 2026 OLYMPIC GAMES

One of the main challenges facing Kirsty Coventry as IOC president is the situation of Russian athletes, especially ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics, to be held in Milan-Cortina, Italy, from February 6-22.

“We hope that our athletes will be able to continue to participate in international competitions,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday. However, the fate of Russian athletes remains uncertain, in a context marked by geopolitical tensions and sports sanctions.

A DECADE OF CONFLICT BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE IOC

Relations between Russia and international sports bodies have been marked by conflict for nearly a decade. From revelations about a state-sponsored doping system at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics to geopolitical tensions stemming from Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has been at the center of multiple controversies.

The Russian offensive in Ukraine led the IOC to exclude Russia from the Olympic Games, limiting its participation in Paris 2024 to a small team of 15 athletes competing under a neutral flag after a strict selection process. In this context, Moscow criticized the IOC for “racism and neo-Nazism”, while the IOC accused Russia of “politicizing sport”.