ANOCA, in partnership with Olympic Solidarity, hereby reasserts its commitment to sport development in Africa by fully supporting the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) Dakar 2026 Training Academy. This unprecedented strategic initiative in the continent’s Olympic history offers young African professionals a unique opportunity to learn and actively participate in the organisation of a major Olympic event.
The initiative is backed by the ANOCA President: “Our support for this Academy clearly demonstrates our commitment to invest in the future of our NOCs, by fostering the emergence of qualified leaders capable of managing and organising world-class sports events. We are laying a solid foundation for a sustainable sports legacy.”
Gateway to excellence for Africa’s youths
The Dakar 2026 Training Academy has been designed as an excellence platform to train the next generation of sports professionals in Africa. Through an intensive and structured programme, it will provide over 400 young people from the 54 African NOCs with practical skills in international sports events management. The initiative is jointly supported by Olympic Solidarity and ANOCA, who will fund participation grants covering travel and accommodation expenses. Each African NOC will have to select promising young talents to take part in the programme. Selected candidates will undergo a two-week training course in Dakar, prior to joining the YOG Dakar Organising Committee teams, where they will play an active role in the preparation and actual staging of the event.
Highly impactful project
The Dakar 2026 Coordination Commission Chair, Humphrey Kayange, presented the initiative to the IOC Executive Board, underscoring its potential to create a lasting impact on the continent: “Thanks to the Training Academy, we are laying the foundations for a lasting legacy for the Olympic Movement that can inspire future host cities of the Youth Olympic Games and the Olympic Games – starting here in Dakar.
Structural legacy for African sport
Involving young Africans directly in the organisation of the YOG Dakar 2026 goes beyond mere professional experience; it is part of a process to bequeath a legacy, transfer skills and empower national structures. By placing young people at the very heart of the Olympic dynamics, ANOCA and Olympic Solidarity are helping to groom a new generation of African sports leaders capable of rising to the challenges of a constantly changing environment.
Model for the future
The Dakar Youth Olympic Games, scheduled for 31 October to 13 November 2026, will mark a historic milestone as the first Olympic event ever held on African soil. The Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly venues will host the cream of the world’s young athletes aged 17 and under. In this regard, the Training Academy stands as a model for integrating human development at the core of the Olympic setup. It demonstrates that the values of excellence, solidarity and respect, so much cherished by Olympic Movement, can translate into concrete actions that benefit communities in the long term.
Call to action
ANOCA, through its President, calls on all the continent’s NOCs to take full advantage of this opportunity and mobilise their resources to identify and select the best candidates. Application procedures will be announced in the coming weeks, and the first participants will be admitted for the programme at the beginning of 2026. By joining forces, Olympic Solidarity, ANOCA and African NOCs are asserting their common desire to make Dakar 2026 not just an historic event, but also a transformative one for the future of sport in Africa. Mustapha Berraf thus launches “… a solemn appeal to all African NOCs to make the most of this unique opportunity by henceforth identifying promising young professionals who will fly the colours of our continent high in Dakar. Together, we must drive ambition, develop talent and make our young people more committed, in order to transform the African sports landscape in the long term. Dakar 2026 is not just a sports event, it is a promise for the future, a strong symbol of our unity and patent proof that Africa can and must place itself at the heart of the international Olympic Movement … Let’s continue, together, to build a bright future for sport in Africa, by making our young people focal to our development strategy,” insisted the ANOCA President.
