Youth Olympics in Dakar: How Khalifa Sall Saved Senegal’s Bid from His Cell in Rebeuss

As Dakar hosts the 2026 Youth Olympic Games, a retrospective recalls Khalifa Sall’s role in securing the event for Senegal. In 2018, Senegal competed against Botswana, Tunisia and Nigeria, but needed formal approval from the City of Dakar, whose mayor, Sall, remained in office despite being jailed at Rebeuss prison. On September 2, acting mayor Soham El Wardini visited him to obtain his consent. Sall approved the bid in the interest of the country’s image, enabling El Wardini to sign the required municipal documents.