For the first time, an Olympic sporting event is coming to Africa. Senegal will host the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games from 31 October to 13 November 2026, with around 2,700 young athletes expected across 25 competition sports. This is the fourth Summer Youth Olympics, not the senior Summer Games.
The change of setting matters. Young Senegalese fans will be able to watch an Olympic competition at home, while visiting athletes get their first taste of an international multisport Games. Alongside the medal programme, ten engagement sports will let young people try activities rather than only watch them, according to the Australian Olympic Committee’s Games guide.
One Games, three host locations
Dakar is Senegal’s capital on the Atlantic coast of West Africa, but the competition stretches beyond the city. Check the venue on each ticket before choosing accommodation or planning a day out.
- Dakar: Rugby sevens is scheduled at Complexe Iba Mar Diop, starting on 1 November. World Rugby’s preview puts the medal days on 2 and 3 November.
- Diamniadio: This is a separate host location, not a central Dakar neighbourhood. World Archery confirms that archery will take place at Abdoulaye Wade Stadium here.
- Saly: The seaside resort on the Petite Côte, south of Dakar, will host beach handball at Saly Beach West from 9 to 13 November, according to the International Handball Federation.
Which countries are confirmed?
There are already confirmed team fields, even though those are not the same thing as a final Games-wide athlete entry list. The examples below come from World Rugby’s qualified teams, the IHF’s confirmed beach-handball teams and Brazil’s national Olympic committee announcement. They are examples, not a complete list of participating countries.
SenegalHost; both rugby sevens and beach-handball competitions
AustraliaGirls’ rugby sevens
BrazilMen’s beach handball; national delegation announced
KenyaGirls’ rugby sevens and women’s beach handball
FranceBoys’ rugby sevens and women’s beach handball
GermanyBoys’ rugby sevens and men’s beach handball
JapanBoys’ rugby sevens
SamoaBoys’ rugby sevens
Senegal is the only country in both the men’s and women’s beach-handball fields. That gives home supporters two teams to follow in Saly. Kenya’s girls’ rugby team and women’s beach-handball team offer another African story to watch across the two locations.
Individual-sport quotas need a different reading. World Triathlon has confirmed quota allocations to 63 National Olympic Committees, including eleven from Africa. Senegal has a place in each individual sprint event. Those allocations confirm places for teams; they do not, on their own, confirm a named athlete’s final entry.
Young athletes with stories already worth following
Brazil has gone further than announcing places. Its 31 August team update named 17-year-old hurdler Kevin Tobias Aguero among the confirmed athletes. He had just run 50.77 seconds for the 400m hurdles, setting Brazilian and South American under-18 records. The same announcement identified 15-year-old judoka Clarisse Vallim, a two-time cadet world champion, as Brazil’s sole judo representative. Brazil’s announcement makes them two names to follow when competition begins.
The Youth Olympics can also be an early look at a future senior star. World Rugby points to New Zealand’s Risi Pouri-Lane, who won Youth Olympic gold in 2018 before winning senior Olympic gold in Tokyo and Paris. She is an example of that pathway, not a Dakar 2026 entrant.
There is room for discovery away from familiar sports, too: the competitive programme includes breaking, skateboarding, Baseball5 and wushu. The separate engagement programme includes surfing and sport climbing. Check that distinction before assuming every activity comes with a medal final.
A little sightseeing between sessions
Keep spare time near the venue you are using. In Dakar, the Senegalese tourism agency’s city guide includes the Mosque of the Divinity pictured above, the Museum of Black Civilisations and Gorée Island. Save Gorée for a generous gap in the schedule, and check current boat departures and return arrangements rather than squeezing it between matches. Ask locally about access before entering places of worship.
If your tickets are for Saly, stay with the Petite Côte: a quiet beach break or an outing to Somone’s lagoon makes more sense than repeatedly returning to Dakar. Allow extra time for transfers and venue security; check session details through the official ticketing link in World Archery’s guide before setting off.
Reporting checked on 28 September 2026. Schedules and selections can change before the opening ceremony; linked organisers and federations are the sources for updates.