Now the Games have come to a close, what's next in line for Lord Coe?

For Sebastian Coe, the past seven years have all been leading up to the past 17 days. Ever since London was awarded the 2012 Games, back in July 2005, his face has been the one most closely associated with the mammoth task of making them a success.

The Paralympics are still to come, but last night's closing ceremony nevertheless signalled that this unique chapter of the life of the Locog chairman is coming to an end. The big question is, what next? Part of the answer came yesterday when David Cameron announced that Lord Coe would become the Government's Olympics Legacy Ambassador. His job – part-time and unpaid – will be to work across departments to ensure that momentum created by the success of the Olympics is driven into increasing sport in school, investment and volunteering.

But that is only one element of where the debonair peer is heading. Coe's heart still belongs to sport. And it is a reasonable bet that his future lies in the Byzantine world of sports governance.

When asked by i what he considers to be his own London 2012 legacy, Coe laughed and said: "I am not really thinking much beyond, well, not thinking anything beyond the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games."

But he has thought beyond the end of London 2012. Earlier this year he announced his intention to stand as president of the governing body of international athletics, the IAAF, when the incumbent steps down in 2015.

But beyond this could lie the ultimate prize – the presidency of the International Olympic Commission. Coe is in a strong position. But, in a world of ruthless jockeying for position, it is very far from a foregone conclusion.

The Prime Minister has confirmed that elite athletes would continue to receive £125m a year up to the next Games in Rio de Janeiro in a bid to emulate this year's record medal haul.