Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games Flame lit at Place du Souvenir, Senegal; first Olympic event on African soil

Arrival of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games Flame in Senegal

The cauldron with the Dakar 2026 Flame was lit at Place du Souvenir in Senegal on 12 September.

Traditional Senegalese music and the beat of drums set the tone for the festivities.

Dakar 2026 is the first Olympic sporting event to be held on African soil.

A procession of 100 Linguères, female figures who embody the spirit of the country of Teranga, carried the Flame to the cauldron dressed in traditional orange boubous.

The March of the 100 Linguères brought together 100 Senegalese women representing different generations, professions and walks of life.

IOC President Kirsty Coventry joined the 100 Linguères for the lighting of the cauldron at Place du Souvenir.

The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games will run from 31 October to 13 November and bring together young athletes from across the globe.

After its arrival in Dakar, the Flame will be taken on a tour across all 14 regions of Senegal before returning to the nation’s capital in late October.