Eswatini joins Dakar 2026 Flame celebrations

BY NIMROD HLOPHE

MBABANE – Huge milestone!

Eswatini was among more than 40 African countries that took part on Saturday in the continent-wide launch of the educational and sporting initiative ‘We Run for Africa’, coinciding with the arrival of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Flame in Senegal.

The Eswatini Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (EOCGA) staged a 5km walk at its headquarters in Lobamba that attracted close to 300 participants who were mainly pupils from the surrounding schools.

The day-long awareness event formed part of a coordinated effort by National Olympic Committees and OlympAfrica centres across Africa.

According to the National Olympic Committee Assistant Projects Manager Lerato Dlamini, the activity was aimed at sensitising the public about the Youth Olympic Games, which will be staged on the African continent for the first time from October 31 to November 13, 2026.

Dlamini explained that the 5kmcovered by participants on September 12, 2026 were intended to contribute towards a collective target of 30 500km, roughly the circumference of Africa as all continental Olympics committees had a similar event.

Dlamini also said the initiative also seeks to pass on the energy of the Games and build excitement ahead of the historic event under the hashtag, ‘Feel it, it’s here!’.

After the walk, the young participants took part in a variety of activities, including colouring, word hunts, tennis games, dance, music and poetry, among others. They were further inspired by the presence of the country’s top boxer, Thabiso Dlamini, who encouraged them to imagine the experience of competing at the Youth Olympic Games.

The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Flame was lit on September 10, 2026 at Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, Greece. Two days later, on Saturday September 12, it arrived in Dakar, Senegal, marking the first time an Olympic flame has reached African soil for Games hosted on the continent. The arrival launched both the Flame Tour across Senegal and the continent-wide ‘We Run for Africa’ initiative.

However, Eswatini is yet to announce its squad for the Games.