The Youth Olympic Games opened in Senegal on Saturday, the first Olympic sporting event ever held in Africa.
Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye declared the Games open at the Abdoulaye Wade Stadium in Diamniadio, about 30 kilometres from Dakar. The ceremony featured about 1,100 performers, including 700 dancers, according to the International Olympic Committee.
Performers in traditional Senegalese gowns formed a giant map of Africa, and the programme mixed West African oral storytelling, concerts and the athletes’ parade under the Games motto “Africa welcomes, Dakar celebrates.” IOC President Kirsty Coventry welcomed the athletes and stressed the significance of a first Olympic event on African soil.
About 2,700 athletes aged 14 to 17 will compete through November 13 in Dakar, Diamniadio and the beach resort of Saly, as the continent seeks a bigger role in international sport.
Sources: AP, IOC Newsroom, Africanews
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