The spirit of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games reached young Ugandans on Saturday as the Uganda Olympic Committee (UOC) joined the global Olympic Movement in celebrating the Games’ historic arrival on African soil.
The activation at Green Valley Primary School brought together young learners, Uganda Olympic Committee officials and other stakeholders for a day centred on the values of Olympism, physical activity, environmental responsibility and the importance of inspiring the next generation to dream of representing Uganda on the Olympic stage. The event formed part of the Dakar Flame Tour 2026, a journey celebrating the Youth Olympic Games coming to Africa for the first time. A symbolic torch-lighting ceremony was held at the school, commemorating the lighting of the Olympic flame in Marseille ahead of its journey towards Dakar, Senegal.
For Uganda, the event was more than a symbolic ceremony. It was an opportunity to take the Olympic message directly to young people.
Inspiring the next generation
Uganda’s Chef de Mission (CDM) for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, Lydia Gloria Mujungu, said the activations are intended to create awareness among young people about the Games and help them understand the values that underpin the Olympic Movement and Uganda is ready to take part in the Games, with the country set to compete in badminton, swimming, athletics, table tennis, coastal rowing and cycling. “We are happy as Uganda to take part in the Games, and we are ready. We shall be participating in six sports — badminton, swimming, athletics, table tennis, coastal rowing and cycling – and we are getting ready,” Mujungu said.
She explained that taking the Youth Olympic message to schools is important because today’s learners could become tomorrow’s Olympians. “We believe that if these values are inculcated in young people, they will be able to appreciate the Games, follow the Games and aspire to be part of Team Uganda in the future,” she added. The three values of excellence, friendship and respect were at the centre of the activation, with the organisers using games and activities to help the learners experience rather than simply hear about the Olympic ideals.
Mujungu also thanked Green Valley Primary School for opening its doors to the initiative and giving the learners an opportunity to engage with the Olympic Movement. She described the symbolic lighting of the torch as a way of passing the Olympic values from one generation to another. “We hope this shall create a fire,” she said.
Taking the Olympic journey to young people
The significance of the activation was further explained by Miss Annet Nakamya, Chairperson of the Olympic Values, Education and Culture Commission at the Uganda Olympic Committee. Nakamya said Uganda had joined the wider Olympic Movement in celebrating the beginning of the Youth Olympic journey in Africa. “Today we have started the Olympic journey, the Youth Olympic journey in Africa. Today was the lighting of the torch, and basically it is called the Dakar Flame Tour 2026,” Nakamya said.
She noted that countries were encouraged to take part in activities celebrating the Games coming to Africa for the first time, with Uganda choosing to bring the celebration to young people. “As Uganda Olympic Committee, or as Uganda as a country, we have taken part in this activity. We have had a big number of young people, because these Games are for the young people,” she said.
For Nakamya, the activation was also about making the Olympic values relevant beyond sport. The learners were encouraged to embrace friendship, respect and excellence, while the activities promoted what she described as the “joy of effort” through movement and participation.
A torch carrying a message beyond sport
One of the notable elements of the activation was Uganda’s focus on environmental sustainability. Nakamya explained that the organisers deliberately used recycled materials to create some of the activities, including board games and the symbolic torch. “As Uganda, we emphasise the need for respect for the environment. We have done all our activities, we’ve used a lot of recycled materials to make our board games, to make the torch, everything, just to make sure that we highlight the importance of sustainability in the growth of the Olympic Movement,” she said.
It gave the torch a meaning beyond its symbolism of the Youth Olympic Games — it also became a reminder that young people have a role to play in protecting the environment.
For the young people who took part, however, the day was also about discovery. Some of the learners who spoke after the activities said they enjoyed the activation because they were able to learn about the Youth Olympic Games, the Olympic values and the importance of sport, their reactions provided a simple measure of what the organisers hoped to achieve: introducing the Olympic Movement to young people in a way that they could understand, enjoy and remember.
The excitement among the learners also reflected the broader purpose of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games — creating opportunities for young athletes while using sport as a platform to educate and inspire a new generation.
As Uganda prepares to send its team to Senegal, the Dakar Flame Tour has therefore offered a starting point beyond the athletes who will compete. At Green Valley Primary School, the Olympic journey began with a torch, but its bigger message was directed at the young people watching, participating and learning — that excellence, friendship and respect can become part of their everyday lives and, for some, the first step towards one day becoming Team Uganda athletes themselves.
With Dakar 2026 approaching, Uganda’s message from the school was clear: the journey is not only about getting athletes to Senegal. It is also about planting the Olympic spirit at home and allowing it to grow among the young people who will shape Uganda’s sporting future.
