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German Thomas Bach has been elected as the new president of the International Olympic Committee.

The 59-year-old lawyer and former fencing gold medallist replaces 71-year-old Jacques Rogge, who is standing down after 12 years in charge.

Bach was the favourite of the six candidates considered for the post in Buenos Aires.

He begins an eight-year term as president, with the possibility of a second, four-year, mandate.

"I'd like to thank all my dear friends and colleagues who voted for me," said Bach, who is the ninth president in the IOC's 119-year history. "This is an overwhelming sign of trust and confidence.

"I know of the great responsibility of being IOC president. This makes me humble.

"I want to lead according to my motto: 'unity in diversity'. This means I will do my very best to balance all the different interests of stakeholders of the Olympic movement."

Sir Philip Craven, president of the International Paralympic Committee, congratulated Bach on his election success.

"Thomas is a long-time advocate of the Paralympic movement and we look forward to working with him to further develop our relationship in the coming years," he said.

Also in the running were Singapore's Ng Ser Miang, Wu Ching Kuo of Taiwan, Richard Carrion of Puerto Rico, Ukrainian athletics legend Sergey Bubka and Swiss Denis Oswald.

Boxing chief Wu was eliminated after the first round, leaving five contenders in the final round of voting.

Bach gained 49 votes ahead of Carrion (29), Ng (6), Oswald (5) and Bubka (4).

Prior to the vote, Bach said his first priority if elected would be to ensure the smooth delivery of the Sochi 2014 Winter Games, which have been subject to delays, budget overruns and concerns over the warm weather.