Her First Games

In a few weeks, the Olympic flame will enter San Siro Stadium in Milan for the Opening Ceremony of Milano Cortina 2026.
It will be a night of pageantry, of national anthems, of athletes marching behind their flags. But for those of us who have spent our lives in the Olympic Movement, it will also be something more.

It will be the first Olympic Games under the leadership of Kirsty Coventry.

I have thought often about what this moment represents. Kirsty was a nine-year-old girl in Zimbabwe when she watched the Barcelona Olympics and decided she wanted to compete. She went on to become the most decorated African Olympian in history: seven medals, two gold, across five Games. She chaired the IOC Athletes' Commission. She served as Zimbabwe's Minister of Sport.

And on March 20, 2025, she shattered a ceiling that had stood for 131 years.

The International Olympic Committee, founded in 1894, had been led by nine presidents. All men. Eight Europeans. One American. When Kirsty received 49 votes on the first ballot, she became the first woman and the first African to hold the position.

Now she will preside over her first Games.

The torch has been traveling across Italy since November, carried by 10,001 bearers through 300 towns. On February 6th, it arrives in Milan. And when Kirsty Coventry welcomes the world to these Winter Games, she will do so as a symbol of how far we have come... and a reminder of how much further we can go.

Later this year, Africa will host its first-ever Olympic event: the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal. A continent that has produced champions for generations will finally welcome the world to compete on its soil.

As Kirsty said in her New Year's message: "These Games represent so much for Africa. They will inspire the next generation and open doors of opportunity across our continent and beyond."

The Olympic Movement is evolving. And we are watching history unfold.

Milano Cortina 2026. February 6th.