PODIUM MILESTONE: SA youngsters match best-ever Youth Olympics medal haul

South Africa’s young athletes have made their mark at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, collecting nine medals so far, including two gold, as the competition makes its debut on African soil. The Games, which run from 31 October to 13 November, are the first Olympic sporting event to be hosted on the African continent. Initially scheduled for 2022, they were postponed by four years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Prior to these Games, the nation’s best return was the nine medals won at the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore 2010. In the 2018 Buenos Aires Games, SA returned with five, while its campaign in Nanjing in 2014 yielded just one.On 9 November, SA’s young stars added to their medal tally through athletics, with Matao le Roux clinching gold in the high jump while Enrique Bosch won the bronze in the 110m hurdles and Darius Botha secured bronze in shot put.This puts SA tied for fifth in the overall standings with France, and 12th on the medal table when ranked by medal colour. Enrique Bosch of South Africa wins bronze in the men’s 110m hurdles at the Dakar 2026 Summer Youth Olympic Games at Iba Mar Diop Stadium on 9 November 2026. (Photo: Daudi Khamadi Were / Gallo Images) For many of the South African athletes in Dakar, the competition has provided an opportunity to test themselves against athletes from outside the African continent for the first time. It has exposed them to a different level of competition as they come up against powerhouse sporting nations including China, the United States of America, Japan, France and Russia – who have been partially allowed to return to international competitions. John-Pierre Theron, who claimed silver in the boys’ hammer throw with a distance of 71.79m, said competing internationally for the first time brought a level of pressure unlike anything he had previously experienced.The Grade 11 learner at Hoërskool Vaaldriehoek finished narrowly behind Ecuador’s Ivan Patry Valdez Arroyo, who threw 73.27m.“This has been amazing. To represent my country and win a medal for the team means more than I can explain,” he said. “This was my first time competing in an international event and the level of pressure was so much higher than anything I have experienced before. I handled it well and it is a great sign of what can be achieved in the future.” Le Roux and Dreyer strike goldLast night, Le Roux cleared 2.16m to clinch gold in the high jump. The teenager had been under pressure after struggling to clear the heights of 2.12m and 2.14m, but responded when it mattered most.Going head-to-head with Chinese athlete Sen Liu, Le Roux cleared 2.16m on the first attempt, leaving Liu without answers.“I am so happy with my performance. I was really struggling with my first three jumps, and I was being put under immense pressure,” said Le Roux. “On the fourth jump I decided enough was enough and I went to put the pressure on him. I got into the groove and it flowed from there.”Matao le Roux wins gold for the men’s high jump final at the Dakar 2026 Summer Youth Olympic Games at Iba Mar Diop Stadium on 9 November 2026. (Photo: Mahugnon Leopold Soglo / Gallo Images) Le Roux hopes the medal will create opportunities for him and his family.“Thank you to everyone who has supported me on this journey, Team South Africa, my friends and my family, especially my mother. The two of us have been struggling for a long time and I hope this medal brings us opportunities we never had before. I want to push on from here and win more medals for my country, and for her,” he said.Le Roux became SA’s second gold medallist at the Games, the first being the rower Callum Dreyer.The 16-year-old turned an unfamiliar discipline to Youth Olympic gold in rowing’s coastal beach sprints solo competition. Coastal beach sprints, which combines running on the beach with rowing out to sea and back, made its Youth Olympic debut in Dakar. Dreyer became the inaugural men’s solo champion. Dreyer had never competed in the discipline before arriving in Dakar, but quickly found his feet, winning the quarterfinals, semi-finals and the final in succession. The Hilton College learner, who only began his rowing journey just 15 months ago, defeated Spain’s Diego Molina Martinez in the final, clocking 2:15.65 to finish 28 seconds ahead of his opponent. “I am so proud to win this medal for South Africa and for Africa as a whole,” said Dreyer. “This was my first time competing in rowing coastal beach sprints and I became more confident with every race. This is an honour. Thank you to my coaches and the support of the Team South Africa family.” ‘Much-needed experience’Leah Markgraaff, who was the first athlete to pick up a medal for South Africa in Dakar claiming silver in the women’s 400m freestyle, said that competing against athletes from outside Africa was also a new experience and exposed her to a higher standard of competition. The young swimmer enjoyed considerable success at the 2025 Africa Youth Games in Luanda, where she won three gold medals. “I have only competed in Africa before against African athletes, so the other nations are all new to me,” she said. “There is certainly a level up in standard, and it is amazing to compete against them. The conditions here are quite similar to Angola in terms of the water temperature, so I believe that experience in Luanda gave me much-needed experience in these conditions.” Markgraaff got off to a fast start, leading for the first two laps before settling into third place at the 200m mark in 2:10.21. She surged past Bulgaria’s Simona Ivanova to claim second place heading into the final 100m, holding her position all the way to the touch the wall to stop the clock in 4:26.13. She finished just behind Ecuador’s Elvira Espinosa, who took the gold medal with a time of 4:22.87. Gold medallist Mana Ishikawa (centre) of Japan, alongside Silver medallist Mohan Chang (left) of China and Bronze medallist Chanel Veldsman of South Africa during the medal ceremony for the women’s 200m Breaststroke during the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games on 2 November 2026. (Photo: EPA / Remi Vallat) Chanel Veldsman followed with two medals, becoming South Africa’s first multiple medallist at the Youth Games, according to the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee. Veldsman clinched silver in the 100m breaststroke with a time of 1:09.48, having already announced herself on the world stage with a bronze in the 200m breaststroke. Silver for SevensDespite limited preparation, SA’s rugby Sevens team managed to claim silver after a 26-19 defeat by France in the final. This was South Africa’s first medal in Sevens at the Youth Olympics, having finished fourth in 2018. The team, which won all three of their pool games, trailed France 21-5 at half-time. However, SA fought back to make it 21-19 with a minute to play, before a late try sealed a 26-19 victory and the gold medal for France.Coach Sandile Ngcobo praised the team’s fighting spirit, particularly in its final two matches. “It’s a massive achievement if you look at where we started a couple of months ago to where we finished today, with the boys needing to convert from 15s to Sevens rugby,” said Ngcobo. “Argentina and France have been building towards this competition for the last two years, while we came close with just a couple of weeks’ preparation and had exams to contend with. Our players also play very little Sevens rugby and had to make a big step up in that regard, which made me even more proud of their effort.” DM