Saeed delights UAE with gold as medal haul rises to four in Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games

The UAE delegation raised its medal tally to four, comprising two gold, one silver and one bronze, at the fourth edition of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, being held in Senegal until 13 November.

Saeed Omar won gold in the men’s 400m and Aisha Mohammed took bronze in the women’s 400m, further strengthening the UAE’s best-ever haul at the Youth Olympic Games since the inaugural edition in Singapore in 2010.

Saeed Omar shone in the men’s 400m final, taking first place and the gold medal in 46.40 seconds, a personal best. He finished ahead of Gambia’s Mustapha Jadama, who won silver in 46.93 seconds, while China’s Han Liu took bronze in 47.16 seconds.

With this achievement, Saeed gave the UAE its second gold in Dakar and the first for UAE athletics in its history of participation in the Youth Olympic Games, confirming the brilliance of the national team’s runners on the Olympic track.

In the women’s 400m final, Aisha Mohammed won the bronze medal, finishing third in 53.06 seconds, a personal best, behind Nigeria’s Praise Ugoh, who took gold in 52.76 seconds, and Venezuela’s Osmary Pacheco, the silver medallist in 52.85 seconds.

With these two medals, the UAE’s athletics tally at the Games rose to three: one gold, one silver and one bronze. Arwa Ali had opened the sport’s account by winning silver in the women’s 100m in 11.41 seconds, becoming the first Emirati woman to win a medal in the history of the Youth Olympic Games and securing the UAE’s first athletics medal at the event.

Riyan Malhan had opened the UAE’s tally in Dakar by winning gold in the boys’ singles in badminton, after beating France’s Mady Sow in the final, and securing the UAE’s first gold medal in its history of participation in the Youth Olympic Games.

UAE national equestrian team rider Alya Almheiri also won gold as part of Team Asia in the continental team competition of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI), held during the Games. It is a separate competition from the official Olympic medal programme.

WAM