Dakar:The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) are set to open on Saturday, marking a historic moment as the first Olympic sporting event to be held on African soil. The Games will run until November 13 and will gather the world's top young athletes in Senegal.
According to Emirates News Agency, the Dakar 2026 Games will feature the inaugural participation of a Refugee Olympic Team in the Youth Olympic Games, with six athletes based in Africa representing millions of displaced people across the continent. Additionally, the event will achieve full gender equality across athlete quota places, sports, disciplines, and events, maintaining a 50% female and 50% male athlete quota.
A total of 2,655 young athletes, aged 14 to 17, are expected to compete, with around 2,700 athlete quota places allocated for the Games. In preparation for Dakar 2026, USD 19.5 million has been allocated to Olympic Solidarity's Youth Development programmes for 2025-2028, with a focus on African National Olympic Committees (NOCs).
Over 960,000 tickets have been made available for various competitions, ceremonies, and Fan Zones, including 300,000 solidarity tickets designated for children, students, associations, and sports clubs. The event is expected to deliver approximately 507 hours of broadcast coverage worldwide, with 19 Media Rights-Holders and more than 70 sublicensees contributing to the international distribution. Compared to the Buenos Aires 2018 YOG, Dakar 2026 is projected to provide 25% more live coverage of the sports featured at both events.