After years of ambitious campaigning to win the International Olympic Committee (IOC) presidency, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) President David Lappartient lost the race in a sprint to the finish on Thursday – it was not even close with the Frenchman finishing at the back of the pack.

Out of 97 votes cast at a seaside resort in Greece, the head of world cycling’s governing body only received 4, while former Olympic swimming gold medalist Kristy Coventry of Zimbabwe earned 49, enough to become IOC President for the next eight years.

Before votes were cast Lappartient, 51, thought he was still in the race. “I will try to convince my colleagues that my candidature is one of the best. I think there’s going to be more than three rounds to get the majority needed for presidency. I don’t think one of the candidates is strong enough to secure a majority [in the early rounds of voting],” he said.

Seems he misread the race, as it only took one round of voting for Coventry to win a majority.

With Lappartient now able to focus all of his energy on cycling, hopefully he will find a host venue for the 2025 UCI Gravel World Championships, unless he continues to wage war on sock height or find new ways to ban innovation just because it looks weird.

Nonetheless, the cycling world might be stuck with him for another four years since he is expected to run for a third term this fall at the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Rwanda.

So far, no other candidates have stepped up to challenge him.

Photo Credit: Getty/Fabrice Coffrini

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