Track and field’s brightest prospects from across the globe are in Dakar, Senegal ready for the start of the Athletics competition at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games. The action kicks off from Sunday 8 November at the Complexe Iba Mar Diop stadium.
The fourth edition of the Summer Youth Olympic Games will see around 400 track and field athletes competing in 36 disciplines. Four athletes will make history on the track, representing the Refugee Olympic team at the Games for the first time.
The first day of action includes a competitive women’s triple jump final where host nation athlete Sokhna Fatoumata Toure will have the home crowd’s support.
Among the medal contenders are Spain’s Gift Okunrobo, who won bronze at the 2026 European U18 Championships with 13.23m, Burkina Faso’s Zalissa Zongo and Algeria’s Hala Khadidja Mefti who have all jumped over 13 metres.
The blue-riband men’s and women’s 100m finals will round off the opening day’s action, with Nigeria hoping for podium finishes from Gift Bright in the men’s and Rosemary Nwankwo in the women’s race.
Day Two sees Ethiopia’s Yordanos Tsigab line up in the women’s 3000m final. The 17-year-old is the 2026 World Junior Champion and fastest U18 in the world this year over the distance.
Tsigab will aim to continue Ethiopia’s record of track success at the Youth Olympic Games.
The final day of track and field action includes Ethiopian medal hope Elsabet Amare who goes in the women’s 1500m final, before the men’s and women’s 200m events bring the competition to a close.
Day 1 timetable and Schedule below:
Kelly is a London-based sportswriter driven by a love for sport, with track and field at the heart of it. She began her journey as a sports reporter covering women's football, and has since gone on to cover major international competitions, including the Paris 2024 Olympic Games for Eurosport.
She breaks up her excessive screen time by running laps around the park or planning her next holiday!
