Senegal announced as first African host of an Olympic event in 2022
Senegal will be the hosts of the first-ever Olympic event on the African continent.
With the 2018 Games currently under way in Buenos Aires, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) yesterday announced Senegal as the host country for the 4th Summer Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in 2022.
One of the highlights of the YOG will be the best rugby sevens teams competing against each other. Rugby sevens made its debut at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing and was one of 32 sports at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires.
The President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, recently declared: “It is time for Africa – the home of many successful and prominent Olympic athletes. Africa is a continent of youth. That is why we want to take the Youth Olympic Games 2022 to Africa and to Senegal. They have offered a project based on a strong vision for youth and sport. There are many opportunities, and we will endeavour to deliver together, as part of a strong partnership, a visionary, responsible and inspiring Youth Games”.
Senegal will host the YOG in three sites: Dakar; the new city of Diamniadio, close to the capital, and the coastal resort of Saly. Macky Sall, the Senegalese President, said a 50 000-seat Olympic Stadium will be built for the government-backed project.
The games budget is estimated at $150 million (R2,2 billion), the IOC executive director of Olympic Games, Christophe Dubi, said at a news conference. Senegal’s games are likely to be held in late May, as this would be at the end of the dry season to “greatly reduce the prevalence of tropical diseases,” IOC vice-president, Ugur Erdener, told the membership.
The 2022 Summer Youth Olympic Games will be the fourth edition of the Summer Youth Olympic Games and the seventh edition of the Youth Olympic Games. It will also be the first Olympic event in history to take place on the African continent, a monumental feat for not only Senegal, but the African continent as a whole.
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