Samsung inspires and empowers athletes and young people to stay connected at Dakar 2026

Supporting Athletes in Dakar 2026

Samsung’s support of athletes at Dakar 2026 is highlighted by a Youth Olympic Games first: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip8 smartphones have been provided to every athlete competing in Dakar 2026.

Dakar 2026 marks the first time Youth Olympians have received Samsung Galaxy smartphones. Building on the role Galaxy devices have played at recent editions of the Olympic and Olympic Winter Games at Paris 2024 and Milano Cortina 2026, respectively, the smartphones have enabled athletes to stay connected with friends and family while capturing and sharing their own Games experiences and highlights.

For some athletes, those highlights at Dakar 2026 have included Victory Ceremonies. Medal-winning athletes have been invited to take their Youth Olympic Victory Selfies on the podium using Galaxy Z Flip7 smartphones.

The Olympic Victory Selfies were introduced at Paris 2024 courtesy of Samsung, and the programme was expanded at Milano Cortina 2026. After a test at Gangwon 2024, the Victory Selfies made their official debut at the Youth Olympic Games, and Youth Olympians have had the chance to capture their medal-winning moments – and they’re loving the opportunity.

“I think it’s absolutely brilliant,” said gold medal-winning triathlete Kimey Casanova of Switzerland. “It’s just so cool to take a selfie with the others on the podium. It’s a really lovely thing to do.”

Athletes have been discovering how to get the best from their phones at the Samsung Open Station in the Olympic Village, where Samsung experts have been helping the competitors to set up their handsets. The Samsung Open Station has also been hosting a programme of fascinating talks and discussions from Athlete Role Models, members of the IOC Athletes’ Commission and others – including “Beyond the Medal: Your Journey Shapes What Comes Next”, a mentoring session featuring a trio of young Olympians.

New Perspectives on the Action

Samsung is also helping Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) to deliver Dakar 2026’s extensive broadcast programme, with footage captured on Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra smartphones adding both insights and excitement to coverage of selected sports at the YOG.

The Galaxy S26 Ultra phones are being used to bring athlete-focused and field-of-play perspectives to live coverage of skateboarding and taekwondo, complementing conventional cameras in both venues. This use of Samsung smartphones at Dakar 2026 follows similar integrations at Paris 2024 and Milano Cortina 2026, when broadcast coverage was enhanced by innovative use of Samsung’s earlier Galaxy S24 Ultra and Galaxy S25 Ultra handsets.

Additionally, through the Olympic(TM) AdminCam content series and S26 Ultra camera features such as Super Steady and Slow Motion, the IOC Social Media team captured unique, social-first content of competitions across events in swimming, gymnastics, athletics and skateboarding.

Phoning in the News

Every 21^st-century journalist and reporter needs to be equipped with top-spec tech – and that includes the IOC Young Reporters: 16 aspiring journalists aged 21-25 who hail from 13 countries on all five continents.

Samsung have provided 21 Galaxy S26 Ultra phones for use by the IOC Young Reporters and their programme mentors, who are currently gaining first-hand reporting experience alongside professional media covering Dakar 2026. The budding journalists even enjoyed their own training session provided by Samsung two days before the Opening Ceremony, focusing on the phone’s key features – including its camera and its AI capabilities. Also on display at the Opening Ceremony were Samsung Galaxy S10 Ultra tablets used by the 204 National Olympic Committees and Olympic Refugee team to show their county name.

"This cohort of the Young Reporters programme has been extremely successful," explained Lucia Montanarella, IOC Associate Director of Olympic Games Media Operations. "What we do is we bring young reporters from across the world. The group has been varying in number from 30 to the 16 that we have over here [in Dakar]. And we basically train them during the event. We bring in a team of mentors, and the young reporters are trained on how to produce text, how to produce broadcast pieces, photographs and social media posts."

Solving Tomorrow’s World Today

Dakar 2026 has also hosted the latest instalment in Solve for Tomorrow, Samsung’s programme supporting young people’s use of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) to address challenges in their communities. The activities in Dakar are part of the Sport&Tech category, a collaboration between the IOC and Samsung that is inspiring young people to drive change by combining sport and technology using innovative solutions.

Global Solve for Tomorrow Ambassadors presented some of their innovations as part of a special exhibition at the Corniche West Live Site, reinforcing the place of education and learning at the heart of the YOG. The ambassadors also met with IOC Young Leaders from Kenya and Lebanon for a knowledge exchange workshop focused on the social challenges facing young people in Africa.

“The Youth Olympic Games are about much more than competition. They are an opportunity for young people to challenge themselves, learn from one another and experience the Olympic values of friendship, respect and excellence,” said James Macleod, IOC Olympism365 Director. “Together with Samsung, we are committed to supporting young people take that spirit beyond the field of play and into their everyday lives and communities. Bringing Solve for Tomorrow ambassadors together with the youth in Dakar is a wonderful opportunity for them to share their ideas, learn from each other and see what is possible when creativity, technology and sport come together. We hope they leave Dakar inspired by one another, with new connections and even greater confidence in their ability to make a positive difference.”