Double Olympic ice hockey bronze medallist Emma Terho has been elected chair of the International Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission (IOC AC).
The Athletes' Commission is a majority elected body that serves as the mediator between athletes and the IOC.
Terho will replace swimming champion Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe as AC chair after being elected ahead of Russian two-time Olympic pole vault champion, Yelena Isinbayeva.
Terho will be following in the footsteps of Finnish Olympian and former sailor Peter Tallberg, who was involved in the Olympic movement for more than 40 years.
"Finland's Peter Tallberg was among the most proactive members of the Athletes' Commission and ensured that the voices of athletes would play a bigger role in the IOC. Both the role and workload of the commission have grown exponentially in recent years, which is a good thing because athletes are the most important part of the Games," the 39-year-old Terho said in an Olympic Committee press release.
"That is why it is both a great and huge responsibility to be in this role and also to continue Peter's legacy. I also believe that this is a valuable post and an opportunity to bring forward the values that I consider important as a Finn," she added.
Terho has been involved in the Athletes' Commission and the IOC since the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.