Dakar

Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge has been appointed Global Ambassador for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games. The Kenyan distance-running great said he is ready to "give back to the next generation", taking on a role promoting the Games as they prepare to come to Africa for the first time, inspiring young athletes ahead of the event.

Senegalese local figures are publicly supporting the Dakar 2026 Olympic Flame tour as the Youth Olympic Games approach. The Flame relay is part of the build-up to the Games, which will be the first Olympic event held on African soil, and community leaders are being enlisted to build enthusiasm and local engagement across the host country ahead of 2026.

The Dakar 2026 Flame has been taken to Keur Massar in Senegal, where organisers presented it as a symbol of shared human values ahead of the Youth Olympic Games. The relay forms part of preparations for the Dakar 2026 event, the first Olympic-format Games to be held on African soil, and highlights the host region's role in the buildup.

A new rail line connecting Blaise Diagne International Airport with Diamniadio, Senegal, has opened to passengers. The route gives travellers from the airport, located outside Dakar, a direct link toward the capital region. Observers see the project as part of Senegal's wider effort to modernise transport infrastructure ahead of major international events hosted in the country.