IOC expanded the list of Athlete Role Models for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games
The International Olympic Committee announced on 19 May 2026 that it had selected five more athletes for the Athlete Role Models programme for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, meaning sporting role models who will work with young participants during the competition. According to the IOC announcement, the new members of the programme are French archer Lisa Barbelin, Egyptian modern pentathlete Yasser Hefny, Senegalese tennis player Yannick Languina, equestrian Omar Abdul Aziz Al Marzooqi from the United Arab Emirates and Japanese breaking representative Hiroto Ono. This increased the total number of Athlete Role Models for Dakar 2026 to 36, after the initial group of 31 athletes had been presented in mid-April.
Dakar 2026 will be held from 31 October to 13 November 2026 in Senegal and, according to official IOC data, will gather around 2,700 young athletes aged up to 17. The Games carry additional historical weight because this will be the first Olympic sporting event held on African soil. The Athlete Role Models programme is therefore not only a promotional addition to a major competition, but part of the broader educational and development framework of the Youth Olympic Games. Its purpose is to give young athletes direct contact with experienced Olympians, medallists and top-level competitors who can speak about careers, pressure, injuries, mental preparation and the everyday challenges of elite sport.
Five new names in a programme that now has 36 Athlete Role Models
The IOC states that the athletes were selected in cooperation with international sports federations and that the group of Athlete Role Models covers 25 competition sports and 10 sports included in the wider engagement programme at the Games in Dakar. The newly appointed athletes come from different sporting environments, reflecting the organisers’ intention to offer young competitors diverse experience and different models of professional development. Lisa Barbelin represents archery, Yasser Hefny modern pentathlon, Yannick Languina tennis, Omar Abdul Aziz Al Marzooqi equestrian sport, and Hiroto Ono breaking.
According to the IOC, they will perform their sporting and mentoring role at locations in Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly, the three main zones connected with the hosting of the Games. There they will take part in workshops, visit training sessions, talk with young athletes and be present at sports venues and victory ceremonies. For visitors planning to follow the programme live, accommodation offers in Dakar and the surrounding area will also be useful, especially because the events will take place in several host zones.
In the IOC announcement, Lisa Barbelin said that in her new role she wants to share her own experience with young people and be someone they can turn to with confidence. World Archery stated in a separate announcement that Barbelin is a two-time Olympian and bronze medallist at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which makes her mentoring role especially relevant for young archers and athletes who are only just adapting to the international stage. The IOC also carried a statement by the Japanese breaking representative Hiroto Ono, who emphasised that he wants to talk about his own Olympic experience, but also show the special nature of breaking as a sport that can be brought closer to young people through words, performance and direct contact.
Why Athlete Role Models are an important part of the Youth Olympic Games
The Athlete Role Models programme was introduced at the first Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010 and has been a permanent part of that competition ever since. Its importance is based on the fact that the Youth Olympic Games are not conceived only as a competition for medals, but also as an educational event. In such an environment, young athletes encounter the global Olympic stage, media interest, the rules of international federations, cultural diversity and the pressure of a major competition for the first time. Experienced athletes in the role of mentors can help them understand these circumstances before they become a burden.
According to the IOC, workshops in Dakar will cover the themes of career development, injury prevention and mental preparation. These are areas that have become just as important in modern sport as training itself. Young competitors are entering professionalised sports systems increasingly early, while they are expected to cope with performance pressure, schooling, travel, public exposure and sometimes a very rapid transition from junior to senior sport. The Athlete Role Models programme therefore has practical value because it turns the experiences of older athletes into advice that can be applied in everyday preparation.
In its materials, the IOC emphasises that athletes are not only competitors on the field, but also people who can inspire young people through their behaviour and transmit Olympic values. In the context of Dakar 2026, that message is further emphasised because the competition is being held on a continent that is receiving an Olympic sporting event for the first time. That is why the role of mentors also includes a wider social dimension: connecting young people from different countries, strengthening respect among athletes and encouraging sports development in the host country.
Dakar 2026 as a historic moment for African sport
The official Olympic Games website describes Dakar 2026 as the first Olympic event on African soil and as a competition that should have a sporting, cultural and social impact on Senegal and the wider African environment. The motto of the Games is “Africa Welcomes, Dakar Celebrates”, and the IOC explains that it is intended to highlight African hospitality, the festive spirit of the hosts and openness towards young athletes from all over the world. Hosting does not relate only to the capital city Dakar, but also to Diamniadio and Saly, which should enable a broader distribution of sports and accompanying programmes.
Through the Games, Senegal will present its sports infrastructure, cultural programmes and young volunteers, but also its own ambition to use sport as a development tool. The IOC states that Dakar 2026 should act as a catalyst for youth engagement, the development of national sports and youth policies, and the creation of long-term social and economic benefits. Such announcements usually depend on successful implementation and the later maintenance of programmes, but the very fact that an Olympic event is coming to Africa for the first time already gives it a special place in the history of the Olympic movement.
The cultural aspect of the Games is also important for Senegal. In its official description, the IOC refers to the term “Teranga”, a word from the Wolof language associated with hospitality, respect and openness towards others. In practice, there will be an attempt to convey that concept through meetings between athletes, cultural programmes, volunteer activities and daily work with young people. For those who will travel to competitions or accompanying programmes, accommodation close to the event venues will be an important logistical element, especially because of the competition schedule across several zones.
The role of Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly in the organisation of the Games
According to official IOC information, the Athlete Role Models will be present in the three host zones: Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly. Dakar, as the capital city, has a central role in presenting the Games and is expected to attract the most attention from the international public. Diamniadio has in recent years been developed as an important urban and infrastructural zone near Dakar, while Saly is known as a coastal tourist area. Such a distribution may help the organisers relieve pressure on the capital while at the same time involving different parts of the country in the Olympic programme.
Precisely because of the multiple locations, the Athlete Role Models programme may be more accessible to young participants. The IOC states that mentors will be included in training sessions, workshops and field meetings, and not only in ceremonial events. This is an important difference because it allows young athletes to have direct conversations in the environment in which they are actually preparing and competing. Such a format reduces the distance between Olympians and young participants and makes the mentoring role more concrete.
For the organisers, the challenge will be to coordinate the competition schedule, the educational programme and the movement of athletes between zones. Because of their educational component, the Youth Olympic Games have a different dynamic from the senior Olympic Games: in addition to results, participants are expected to take part in workshops, cultural activities and exchange programmes. That is why Athlete Role Models can have an important role in encouraging young competitors to take part beyond the field of play.
The first group was presented in April, new names were added in May
The IOC presented the initial group of 31 Athlete Role Models on 16 April 2026, and the announcement of 19 May 2026 expanded that list to 36 names. In its April announcement, the IOC stated that those selected included Olympic champions, medallists and Olympians from different sports. This is intended to ensure that young athletes in Dakar have access to people who have gone through different stages of elite sport: from qualifications and great expectations to appearances on the Olympic stage and life after the biggest competitions.
The additional five names are also important because of the coverage of sports that will be present on the programme. Breaking is especially interesting because it represents urban sports culture and a form of competition close to young people. Archery, modern pentathlon, tennis and equestrian sport bring entirely different competitive traditions and demands. The combination of these sports can broaden the range of experiences that will be available to participants in the Games, from technical precision and tactical preparation to physical endurance, creativity and the relationship with an animal in equestrian sport.
According to information published on the Athlete365 platform, all 36 athletes will have an important role in supporting the new generation of competitors. Athlete365, the IOC platform intended for athletes, presents the programme as an opportunity for young participants to receive advice from people who understand the life of elite sport from the inside. This kind of support is especially important at an age when young athletes are still developing, both in sporting and personal terms.
Mental preparation and injury prevention at the centre of the workshops
One of the most important elements of the announced programme concerns mental preparation. The IOC states that mental readiness will be one of the topics of educational workshops in Dakar. This is an area that has become increasingly visible in international sport in recent years because results depend not only on physical preparedness, but also on the ability to manage pressure, expectations, defeats and public attention. For athletes up to 17 years of age, such topics can be decisive because they are often encountering a competition with global visibility for the first time.
Injury prevention is also a key topic. Young athletes in the development phase can be exposed to excessive training loads, especially when quick results are expected of them. Experienced athletes can help them understand the importance of recovery, proper season planning and communication with coaches and medical staff. Such advice does not replace professional medical work, but it can bring young people closer to understanding why long-term health is just as important as the immediate result.
The third important topic is career development. In sports in which the professional path is not always financially secure, young competitors must think early about education, skills outside sport and a possible transition to other roles after their competitive career. The Athlete Role Models programme can therefore open conversations about schooling, career planning, public appearances, responsibility towards the community and the way in which sporting experience can be used even after the end of active competition.
A programme that connects competition, education and the local community
The IOC announces that the Athlete Role Models, in addition to working with competitors, will also be involved in activities with local communities. This is important because the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar do not want to remain closed within sports venues. If the programme is implemented as announced, young people in Senegal will be able to meet Olympians and sporting role models, and not only follow competitions as spectators. Such meetings can have a longer-term effect than the sporting result itself because they bring children and young people closer to the possibility of practising sport and participating in international programmes.
In that sense, Dakar 2026 is also a test of the IOC’s broader strategy for connecting sport with education and social development. Official IOC materials emphasise that the Games should promote Olympic values among young people in Senegal and on the African continent. This includes respect, excellence and friendship, but also concrete forms of engagement such as volunteering, education and creating opportunities for young people. The Athlete Role Models programme fits into that framework because it is based on personal experience and the direct transfer of knowledge.
A special feature of Dakar 2026 will also be the first appearance of the Olympic Refugee Team at the Youth Olympic Games. According to the official Games website, the composition of that team will be determined later, and the IOC links the project with the wider work of the Olympic Refuge Foundation in Africa. This will additionally open, alongside the sports programme, the question of access to sport for displaced persons and young people who come from particularly vulnerable circumstances.
Dakar 2026 enters the final phase of preparations
The announcement of new Athlete Role Models comes less than six months before the start of the Games, which means that Dakar 2026 is entering a period in which programme and organisational preparations must turn into operational implementation. In April and May 2026, the IOC published more information connected with the Games, including the Young Reporters programme, Young Leaders activities and preparations by national Olympic committees. This shows that, alongside the sports schedule, the educational, media and volunteer framework of the competition is also being built at the same time.
For the young athletes who will compete in Senegal, the meeting with mentors such as Barbelin, Hefny, Languina, Al Marzooqi and Ono could be one of the more important values of the Games. Medals will remain the central sporting goal, but the Youth Olympic Games have a broader task: to give athletes an experience that prepares them for a senior career and for life outside results tables. That is precisely why the IOC emphasises in the announcement that Athlete Role Models will not only be present at ceremonies, but will take part in workshops, conversations and daily activities at the host locations.
From 31 October to 13 November 2026, Dakar will host a new generation of athletes, but also a group of experienced competitors whose role will be to help them understand what it means to compete on a major international stage. If the programme fulfils its announced purpose, the Athlete Role Models could leave a mark that goes beyond the results of individual competitions and become one of the more visible elements of the legacy of the first Olympic sporting games held in Africa.
Sources:
- International Olympic Committee – announcement on five additional Athlete Role Models for Dakar 2026 (link)
- Olympics.com / IOC – official page of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games with dates, context and host description (link)
- International Olympic Committee – announcement on the initial group of Athlete Role Models for Dakar 2026 (link)
- Athlete365 / IOC – overview of Athlete Role Models for Dakar 2026 (link)
- World Archery – confirmation of Lisa Barbelin’s appointment and additional context on her sporting career (link)
- World DanceSport Federation – confirmation of Hiroto Ono’s appointment as an Athlete Role Model in the Dakar 2026 programme (link)