Governing Bodies
DAKAR 2022 YOUTH OLYMPIC GAMES POSTPONED UNTIL 2026
BY LIAM MORGAN
The 2022 Summer Youth Olympic Games in Dakar have been pushed back by four years to 2026, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced.
Amid widespread disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, IOC President Thomas Bach said the organisation had mutually agreed to postpone the first Olympic event to be held in Africa following a request from Senegal President Macky Sall.
The decision was approved by the IOC Executive Board during its latest remote meeting today and will be given the green light by the Session on Friday (July 17).
The IOC said the postponement results from the “large scale of the operational challenges which the IOC, the National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and the International Federations (IFs) are facing following the postponement of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020”.
Bach claimed the Senegalese capital hosting the Games “would have meant we would have had to organise five Games in three years”.
“This really was too heavy workload for everybody,” Bach added.
In a statement, the IOC said postponing Dakar 2022 “allows the IOC, the NOCs and the IFs to better plan their activities, which have been strongly affected by the postponement of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, by the subsequent postponements of major international sports events, and by the operational and financial consequences of the global health crisis”.
Dakar 2022 had been awarded the event in 2018 and the IOC was keen to stress the significance of it being the first Olympic event to take place in Africa.
Preparations for the Youth Olympic Games appeared to hit problems in January as the Senegalese Government had not released the required funding.
Moving the event to 2026 means it is now set to take place in the same year as the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Bach admitted the IOC had “not had time” to relay the decision to postpone Dakar 2022 to the countries who had expressed varying degrees of interest in staging the 2026 Youth Games.
Colombia, India, Russia and Thailand had all entered into discussions with the IOC’s Future Host Commission, which identifies and recommends potential venues for Olympic events, over hosting the Games in 2026.
Bach said the four nations would be in a “privileged position” for 2030 and that he was “sure they will understand the situation”.
“I would like to reiterate that the IOC has my full support for the organisation of the Youth Olympic Games, postponed to 2026,” Sall said.
“I take this opportunity to reaffirm my confidence in the Executive Board and welcome the commitment of its teams, working side by side with us, to make Dakar 2026, the first Olympic event in Africa, a successful and memorable occasion.”
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The president of the Confédération of African Football, Dr. Patrice Motsepe, has announced five new CAF Vice Presidents. They are:
- CAF First Vice President: Mr Fouzi Lekjaa (Morocco)
- CAF Second Vice President: Mr Kurt Okraku (Ghana)
- CAF Third Vice President: Mr Pierre-Alain Mounguengui (Gabon)
- CAF Fourth Vice President: Ms Bestine Kazadi Ditabala (Democratic Republic of Congo)
- CAF Fifth Vice President: Mr Feizal Sidat (Mozambique)
In addition, the CAF President has co-opted Yacine Idriss Diallo, President of Fédération Ivoirienne de football, into the CAF Executive Committee.
The CAF Executive Committee also approved the names to fill vacant positions on several CAF Committees.
Organising Committee for the African Nations Championship (CHAN)
- President: Pierre-Alain Mounguengui (Gabon)
CAF Technical and Development Committee
- President: Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon)
- Vice President: Malouche Belhassen (Tunisia)
CAF Medical Committee:
- President: Dr. Mohammed Bouya (Mauritania)
- Vice President: Dr. Thulani Ngwenya (South Africa)
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Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.
The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.
Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.
He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.
An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.
He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.
“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”
Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.
“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.
He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.
“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.
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A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.
Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.
He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.
The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.
He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.
Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.
While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.
-Reuters
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