British former Olympian Sebastian Coe has been named as the new head of world athletics governing body, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
Coe, who won four Olympic medals, including two golds, as a middle distance runner, headed London’s successful bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games.
A former lawmaker, he became a life member — a lord — in the upper house of Britain’s parliament in 2000.
The IAAF confirmed that Coe, previously a vice-president, had become their sixth president at the 50th IAAF Congress in Beijing, beating rival and former Ukrainian Olympic pole vaulter Sergey Bubka in the final vote.
Coe’s appointment comes at a turbulent time for the athletics body, as it battles a series of much-publicized doping controversies.