First Youth Olympic medals to be decided today in Dakar 2026
Swimming and judo open the medal table on the first full day of Africa's first Olympic event.
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Taiwo Banjoko
Dakar — The first medals of the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026 are due to be awarded today, Sunday 1 November, in swimming and judo.
Africa's first Olympic event brings together about 2,700 athletes aged 14 to 17 in Dakar, Diamniadio and the beach resort of Saly. They will compete for 153 sets of medals until 13 November.
Worth watching over the fortnight
- New to the Youth Olympics: Baseball5, wushu, coastal rowing beach sprint and beach wrestling.
- A first refugee team: six athletes based in Kenya and Uganda will compete in athletics, judo and taekwondo.
- The mascot: Ayo, a young lion in a traditional Fulani hat, whose name means "joy" in Yoruba.
We will report each day's results, starting with today's medals, once they are confirmed.
Sources: Africanews, 31 October 2026; EWN, 24 July 2026.
