Kirsty Coventry has made history. The Zimbabwean sports minister and former Olympic gold medallist was elected as the 10th president of the International Olympic Committee last week. She became the first woman and African president to hold this prestigious position in IOC’s 131-year history. This is not only a proud achievement for Coventry herself, but also for her nation, Zimbabwe, and for the entire African continent. Her election is a powerful inspiration to people around the world, especially women, who see in her a symbol of perseverance, excellence and leadership. Coventry’s victory has also been warmly celebrated in China as the Zimbabwean “Golden Girl” enjoys a huge fan base here. Her sporting career is nothing short of remarkable: winning seven Olympic medals, more than anyone else from Africa, including one gold and three silvers medals earned at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. I had a privilege of interviewing Coventry in January 2022, just before her visit to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics as an IOC member. She shared with me how Beijing means to her personally, especially the National Aquatics Centre, also known as the “Water Cube”, where she achieved some of her greatest Olympic successes. And that iconic “Water Cube”, transformed into an ice rink for the Winter Olympics, was something she was eager to revisit. “Beijing has a warm place in my heart. Obviously, that’s where I won my Olympic medals, a gold and three silvers. I’m excited to go back and cheer on our athletes of the world, watching athletes live out their Olympic dream, and especially in the ‘Water Cube’, which will be really interesting to see how different it looks now,” Coventry said. During our conversation, Coventry also emphasised her dedication to promoting exchanges in sport, culture and art between Zimbabwe and China. “Under my portfolio, it’s not just sport, it’s also art and culture. I think China does an incredible job of being proud of your culture and your heritage, and that’s something that we’re really trying to emphasise as a ministry,” she said. “I’d love to be able to have a little bit more work alongside the Chinese counterparts to achieve a little bit more of that and learn from China in terms of how you structured your cultural lessons, your museums, things like that. That for me is really important in order to be able to have a strong identity as a Zimbabwean people, as a Zimbabwean culture.” Coventry’s vision is clearly reflected in her IOC presidential manifesto, where she advocates for using sport as “a bridge between countries and cultures, a source of hope, and a force for good.” She also pledged to tackle inequality in sport, with a strong focus on promoting women’s participation and ensuring equal opportunities for female athletes at every level. What many may not know is that after retiring from professional sport in 2016 — having competed in five Olympic Games — Coventry launched a charitable initiative to provide sports education to underprivileged children. Her goal was to give young people a chance to discover their potential and pursue careers in sports. Her actions have already made a meaningful difference in the lives of ordinary people. Now, as the new president of the IOC, Coventry has an even greater platform to bring about positive change. Her leadership promises to inspire and uplift not just Zimbabwe and Africa, but the global sporting community as a whole. Gao Junya works for China’s CGTN global television channel.