Team Rwanda athletes are making steady progress at the Dakar 2026 Summer Youth Olympic Games, recording personal bests and gaining valuable international experience as the competition unfolds in Senegal. After several days of preparations from October 27 to 31, Rwanda's delegation shifted its focus to competition following the official opening ceremony on October 31. Host nation President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame attended the ceremony. The build-up featured intensive training sessions focused on conditioning, endurance and recovery, alongside familiarisation with competition venues. Athletes whose events are yet to begin have continued training, adjusting their preparations to their respective competition schedules. ALSO READ: Rwanda embarks on preps for Dakar Youth Olympics Swimming delivered some of Rwanda's early highlights on November 1, when Keza Kalisa and Kean Sheja opened the country's campaign with personal-best performances. Keza finished sixth in her heat of the women's 200m backstroke in 3:06.58, shaving 2.42 seconds off her previous personal best. Sheja also impressed in the men's 100m butterfly, finishing third in his heat in 1:03.89 to improve his previous best by 4.75 seconds. The two swimmers returned to the pool on November 2 for the 100m freestyle events, alongside compatriot Aragsan Mugabo. ALSO READ: Team Rwanda steps up preparations for Dakar Youth Olympics Sheja clocked 58.57 seconds in the men's 100m freestyle, finishing just 0.03 seconds outside his personal best of 58.54, set at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Mugabo, meanwhile, matched her personal best of 1:08.54 in the women's 100m freestyle, maintaining her previous mark. Beyond swimming, Rwanda was also represented in Kung Fu Wushu, where Mugisha Francois competed in the Changquan Combined event. Mugisha scored 7.966 in Changquan and 7.863 in Gunshu, giving him a combined score of 15.829 to finish ninth among 12 competitors. He narrowly missed out on a place in the final, finishing one position outside the qualification spots. Speaking to Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) after making his international debut at the Games, Mugisha described the experience as valuable, saying it had provided an important foundation for his continued development. With several events still to come, Team Rwanda will continue its campaign across swimming, cycling, athletics and taekwondo as the Games progress. The remaining competitions will offer Rwandan athletes further opportunities to measure themselves against some of the world's most promising young talents. November 4: Swimming Venue: Complexe Tour de l’Oeuf, Dakar 10:00: Aragsan Mugabo Liban: Women's 50m freestyle, Heat 3. 10:20: Jayden Ntwali: Men's 50m freestyle, Heat 2. 11:00: Kalisa Keza: Women's 50m butterfly, Heat 1. 11:10: Jayden Ntwali: Men's 50m butterfly, Heat 2. November 6: Swimming Venue: Complexe Tour de l’Oeuf, Dakar 10:00: Aragsan Mugabo Liban: Women's 50m backstroke, Heat 1. 10:15: Jayden Ntwali: Men's 50m backstroke, Heat 2. 10:20: Kean Murenzi Sheja: Men's 200m freestyle, Heat 1. 10:25: Kalisa Keza: Women's 50m breaststroke, Heat 1. November 8: Cycling and Athletics 09:00: Donatha Akimana: Women's road race, Corniche Ouest. 11:00: Emmanuel Shema: Men's road race, Corniche Ouest. 16:20: Sonia Eli-Elohe Abizera: Women's 400m semi-finals, Complexe Iba Mar Diop. November 9: Taekwondo and Athletics 11:00: Francoise Uwamahoro: Women's -49kg, Round of 16, Complexe Iba Mar Diop. 16:50: Sonia Eli-Elohe Abizera: Women's 400m final, Complexe Iba Mar Diop. November 10 – Cycling 09:00: Donatha Akimana: Women's individual time trial, Corniche Ouest. 10:30: Emmanuel Shema: Men's individual time trial, Corniche Ouest.
