Senegal rugby dancers
France Delight At Sevens Gold and Beach Sprint Baptism Brings Gold for China
by Philip Barker at the Complex Iba Mar Diop, Dakar
France beat South Africa 26-19 to win the men’s rugby sevens in what was a close encounter right up to the last moments when a touchdown gave the French a little breathing space.
The match was watched by Guy Drut who won 110m gold at Montreal.
“This was you 50 years ago,” someone asked him. “Oui” he responded with a smile.
The match was almost drowned out by the fervent support from the futsal hall across the way where two Senegalese goals in 9-2 defeat by Argentina almost drowned out everything else.
Senegal’s Taaranga drums lifted Olympic support to a new level even though their side lost against Japan and in the women’s competition against the fancied Australians.
Away on the coast at Sally there was a glimpse of what’s in store at the Los Angeles Olympics on offer at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympics when coastal rowing’s first medals were decided.
China’s Liu Lili and Su Jintao won the mixed double sculls to win the first title in a sport to be contested at LA28.
“This gold medal is a huge milestone in our lives,” Su said.
“We spent 100 days preparing for this competition and the training was really intense,” revealed Liu.
The Chinese pair came home in 2:22.37 a second ahead of the Austrians in a match race final.
The competition sees rowers sprint to their boats to begin racing in a Le Mans style start used in the early years of the race.
🥇 A historic victory for Su Juntao and Liu Lili of the People’s Republic of China!
🚣 They won the first-ever Youth Olympic Games gold medal in coastal rowing beach sprints. A brilliant performance in the mixed double sculls final. 👏
📸: OIS / Nic Bothma & Jonathan Nackstrand
#Olympics #YouthOlympics #Dakar2026
— The Olympic Games™ (@Olympics) November 2, 2026
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