Heavyweight seven eye finish line in race to succeed Olympics chief Thomas Bach

Costa Navarino – The race to succeed Thomas Bach as president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is nearing the finish, with Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr, Sebastian Coe and Kirsty Coventry widely seen to be clear of the remaining quartet.

Any of those three would be an historic winner in the election in Greece on March 20.

Samaranch would emulate his father of the same name and become the first father and son to be elected president, Coe would be the first Briton and Zimbabwean Coventry the youngest at 41, and both the first woman and African.

Nevertheless, surprises from the electorate of 100-plus IOC members cannot be ruled out in the battle to become the most powerful figure in sports governance.

Ski federation chief and renowned environmentalist Johan Eliasch, Morinari Watanabe, president of the gymnastics federation, cycling head David Lappartient and Prince Feisal al-Hussein make up the heavyweight field.

Whoever wins will take over a financially secure body, but those calm waters are muddied by a febrile geopolitical situation.

Adding to the potent mix, the new IOC chief will have to deal with unpredictable US President Donald Trump as Los Angeles hosts the next Olympics in 2028.

In this “very complex world”, as Samaranch termed it, where previously undisputed truths such as “universality, fraternity and unity” are now disputed, it is no time to take a leap in the dark.

The 65-year-old Spaniard, an assured and polished performer with over two decades as an IOC member, argues he provides the steady hand at the tiller that is required.

“It is not about the face or the gender, or the continent,” he told AFP in an interview.

“Even in the easiest of times, we should elect the best person for the job.

“This is too important and too relevant for