IOC picks Senegal as first African host
BUENOS AIRES: The IOC has picked its first African host of any Olympics, formally awarding the 2022 Youth Games to Senegal.
Senegal’s President Macky Sall was present on Monday to see International Olympic Committee members confirm the executive board’s preference from four candidates.
Senegal will host the youth games in three places: Dakar, new city of Diamniadio which is close to the capital, and the coastal resort of Saly.
Sall said a 50,000-seat Olympic Stadium will be built for the governmentbacked project.
The Games budget is estimated at US$150 million, Christophe Dubi, IOC executive director of Olympic Games, said at a news conference.
The Senegal Games are likely to be held in late May. This would be at the end of the dry season to greatly reduce the prevalence of tropical diseases,’’ IOC vice president Ugur Erdener said.
Erdener pointed to Senegal’s “booming economy’’ and better conditions than the other bidders from Botswana, Nigeria and Tunisia.
The construction project includes a rail link and an athletes village which will become university accommodation.
It is not required to have a detailed budget at this stage,’’ Erdener said, though noting that Senegal’s government has “full understanding of the magnitude’’ of its task.
One IOC member from Africa said the whole continent would share the responsibility of its first Olympics, comparing it to football’s 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
“In Africa, when a family organises a party all the neighbours chip in and they help organising the event,’’ said Lydia Nsekera of Burundi, who also sits on Fifa’s ruling council, responding to a fellow IOC member’s question about Senegal’s economic indicators.
Thailand, meanwhile, is interested in hosting the 2026 Youth Olympics.