IOC Calls for Medal Design Submissions for Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games
Dakar – Creatives and Olympic fans now have a thrilling chance to etch their name in Olympic history.
A global initiative is set in motion to design one of the most essential symbols of the Games: the front side of the medal for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games (YOG).
The winning design will be featured on the medals awarded to athletes who celebrate on the podium in Senegal.
Design submissions are open from 2 September to 7 October 2025 via a specialized platform on Olympics.com.
Dante Akira Uwai, the designer of the front of the Gangwon 2024 medal, shared how his participation in 2024 transformed his life: “A lot has changed since Gangwon.
Numerous opportunities have come my way through the medal design competition, especially for my career.
Yet, I believe the most profound change was internal. It was the realization of the transformative power of both art and sport.”
In addition to submitting designs from 2 September to 7 October 2025 via the specialized platform on Olympics.com (https://apo-opa.co/4mTEo6H), participants can also find a toolkit that includes design specifications, guidelines, and rules.
Entries will be assessed based on five criteria: creativity, originality, relevance to the YOG narrative, feasibility, and written description.
A jury made up of International Olympic Committee (IOC) Dakar 2026 Coordination Commission Chair Humphrey Kayange OLY; Gangwon 2024 medal design winner Dante Akira Uwai; IOC Young Leaders Peniamina Percival OLY and Pragnya Mohan; IOC Young Reporters Yun Su Park and Yann Durand; and Dakar 2026 ambassador Elzo Jamdong, will evaluate submissions, rank designs, and send their recommendations to the IOC Executive Board for approval.
The reverse side of the medal will be created by the Dakar 2026 Organising Committee, featuring Senegalese cultural elements along with the YOG emblem.
“The transformative power of both art and sport”
The initiative to design the medal’s front was first launched for the Singapore 2010 YOG, with Japan’s Setsuko Fukuzawa creating the “Yes Youth Can” emblem.
Since then, emerging designers from Slovakia, Romania, Indonesia, New Zealand, and Brazil have had their works celebrated on the YOG podium.
For Gangwon 2024, over 3,000 submissions from 120 countries were received, with Brazilian artist and architect Dante Akira Uwai chosen for his design, “A Sparkling Future”.
“As I designed my medal, I frequently imagined the athlete receiving it,” Uwai reflected.
“What emotions do I wish to inspire?
“What should they perceive? And as they grow older, filled with memories, what recollections should this medal evoke when they see it displayed?”
Reflecting on Gangwon 2024, he stated: “The most significant memory for me was witnessing the medal being presented to an athlete for the very first time.
“I had visualized that moment for an entire year, and when it finally happened, it was incredibly moving.”
The Dakar 2026 YOG is scheduled to take place over two weeks, starting on 31 October, bringing together the world’s best young athletes up to 17 years old.
The Games will occur across three locations: Dakar, Diamniadio, and Saly.
