Namibia will be part of Olympic history in Senegal next year, with a 23-member delegation selected to represent the country at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games from October 31 to November 13, the first Olympic event to be staged on African soil.
The Namibia National Olympic Committee (NNOC) has selected 12 young athletes who will compete across seven sports: athletics, beach volleyball, boxing, cycling, swimming, triathlon and beach wrestling.
The athletes will be accompanied by eight coaches and technical officials, as well as three team management and support staff, bringing the total delegation to 23. Maike Betts has been appointed Team Namibia’s Chef de Mission and will oversee the delegation while ensuring the athletes receive the necessary preparation and support throughout the Games.
Among the athletes selected are sprinter Elkana Shikongo Iileka, who will compete in the men’s 200m, while Namibia’s beach volleyball hopes will rest on Matheus Salvado, Tangeni Nahenda and Nathanael Amunyela Junior Ndemukulunga.
In boxing, Kalenga Leevi Abraham will compete in the men’s 50kg category. Namibia’s cycling contingent includes Mike Olivier Bartmann and Bianca Nell, while the swimming team features Lorenzo Ethan Esterhuizen, Madison Sara Bergh and other young swimmers. Johannes Jacob Langford will compete in the men’s individual sprint triathlon, while Shithigona Lisias Shipopyeni will fly the Namibian flag in beach wrestling in the men’s 60kg category.
The delegation will also include experienced coaching and technical personnel, with Kara Scheepers serving as physiotherapist and Vincentius Vernon Boois taking on the roles of Press Attaché and Administration official. The NNOC says Dakar 2026 represents more than a chance to compete for medals, with the Games providing Namibia’s young athletes with invaluable international exposure and an opportunity to compete and interact with some of the world’s most promising young sportsmen and women.
The experience is expected to contribute to their development both on and off the field, while exposing them to different sporting cultures and helping shape them into future sports ambassadors and leaders. For Namibia, participation in Dakar 2026 is also an investment in the next generation of sporting talent and an opportunity to showcase the country’s young athletes on a historic African stage.
The NNOC congratulated all selected athletes and officials and called on Namibians to rally behind Team Namibia as the delegation prepares to carry the national flag with pride in Senegal. With Dakar set to make Olympic history as the first African host of an Olympic event, Namibia’s young athletes will have the opportunity to become part of a landmark chapter in the continent’s sporting history.
By Rudi Bowe
