Sebastian Coe, the president of World Athletics, was voted as a new member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Friday at the 136th IOC Session.

The Brit, a two-time Olympic 1,500 meter champion, became the head of athletics' world governing body in 2015, but his entry into the IOC had been turned down several times due to a conflict of interest.

However, after having stepped down from an active role in a consultancy firm, the door was finally opened and the 63-year-old was nominated last month and approved on Friday for his membership in the IOC at the first ever virtual IOC Session.

Among 85 valid votes, there were 77 votes to approve Coe's membership, with eight votes against.

Along with Coe, elected onto the IOC are four individual members, namely Maria de la Caridad Colon Ruenes (1958) from Cuba, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic (1968) of Croatia, Reema Bandar Al-Saud (1975) from Saudi Arabia and Mogolia's Battushig Batbold (1986).

Chinese IOC member Li Lingwei was re-elected for an additional eight years. Additionally, another IOC member from China, Yu Zaiqing, whose term of office was expected to end in December 2021 due to the age limit, had his term extended until the end of 2025.

The video conference today also approved the recommendation from the IOC Executive Board (EB) to organize two IOC Sessions in 2021.

As a result, the 137th IOC Session, which will include the presidential election on the agenda, will be held in spring, and the 138th will take place before the Tokyo Olympic Games, which are now slated to kick off on July 23 and end on August 8.

Thomas Bach, the current IOC president, has confirmed that he is "ready" to run for a second term for his position as chief of the world's top sports organization. If the German succeeds, he will lead the IOC for another four years.

The details of the two sessions and the exact dates will be determined by the IOC EB at a later date.

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