Holm, Coventry and Murofushi among IOC candidates

Former Olympic high jump champion Stefan Holm of Sweden and seven-time swimming medalist Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe are among 21 candidates vying for election to the IOC athletes' commission. Four spots on the commission will be filled in voting during next year's London Olympics. Athletes elected onto the panel become full members of the International Olympic Committee for an eight-year term. Athletes whose terms expire next year are Hicham El Guerrouj, Rania Elwani, Frank Fredericks and Jan Zelezny. Holm won the high jump at the 2004 Athens Games. Coventry won three medals, including gold in the 200-meter backstroke, in Athens. She defended her title and won three silvers at the 2008 Beijing Games. Other nominees include 2004 hammer throw champion Koji Murofushi of Japan, reigning women's javelin champion Barbora Spotakova of the Czech Republic and two-time canoe-slalom gold medalist Tony Estanguet of France.