达喀尔——国际奥委会主席柯丝蒂·考文垂周四表示，非洲有史以来首个奥林匹克体育赛事筹备已久，尽管推迟了四年，达喀尔青奥会已准备就绪。
Dakar – The first Olympic sporting event to ever be held in Africa has been a long time in the making but the Dakar Youth Olympics are ready to deliver despite a four-year postponement, International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry said on Thursday.
塞内加尔是首个举办奥林匹克体育赛事的非洲国家。本届青奥会将于周六开幕，来自204个国家奥委会的近2700名14岁至17岁运动员将参赛。
Senegal is the first African country to host an Olympic sporting event, with the Youth Games opening on Saturday with the participation of almost 2,700 athletes, aged 14 to 17, from 204 national Olympic committees.
本届赛事将持续至11月13日，原定于2022年举行，但因新冠疫情被迫推迟。
The Games, which will run until Nov. 13, were initially set for 2022 but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“它来了，”考文垂在周六开幕式前视察了场馆和运动员村后，在达喀尔举行的新闻发布会上说。“我们非常高兴。这一赛事筹备已久。所有重大里程碑都已在推进之中。”考文垂来自津巴布韦，曾获奥运游泳冠军，于2025年当选，是首位领导国际奥委会的非洲人。
“It’s here,“ Coventry told a news conference in Dakar after inspecting the venues and the athletes’ village ahead of Saturday’s opening ceremony. “We are so happy. This has been a long time in the making. We have gotten all the big milestones under way.” Coventry, a former Olympic swimming champion from Zimbabwe, is the first African to lead the organization, having been elected in 2025.
达喀尔青奥会组织方表示，他们不得不应对最后一刻出现的能源和降雨问题，但已为赛事开幕亮起绿灯，6000多名志愿者参与组织工作。
Dakar Games organizers said they had to deal with last-minute energy and rain issues but have given the green light for the start with more than 6,000 volunteers helping in the organization.
组织方表示，安保规模也将相当大，将包括拥有2024年巴黎奥运会安保经验的西班牙和法国警官。
Security will also be considerable and will include Spanish and French police officers, with experience from the 2024 Paris Olympics, organizers said.
“团队可以给出所有保证，所有人都已做好准备，”考文垂说。“我尤其感到自豪。国际奥委会做出（将赛事授予达喀尔的）决定时，我是其中一员。终于来到这里，感觉等待了很久……看到一届奥运赛事呈现出的水准，更令人欣慰。”
国际奥委会本届青奥会协调委员会主席汉弗莱·卡扬格表示，青奥会的影响可能更为深远。
“The team can give all assurances that everyone is ready to go,“ Coventry said. “I specifically feel very proud. I was part of the IOC when we took the decision (to award the Games to Dakar). To finally be here it feels like a long time coming ... and to see the level of an Olympic event being displayed.” Humphrey Kayange, the IOC’s coordination commission chair for the Games, said the impact of the Youth Games could be wider.
尽管过去曾有多个国家申办，非洲从未举办过夏季奥运会。周四，德班被提名为南非申办2036年或2040年奥运会的候选城市。
Africa has never hosted the Summer Olympics despite bids from several countries in the past. On Thursday Durban was named as South Africa’s candidate for either the 2036 or 2040 Olympics.
“看到它（达喀尔）成形，真是太棒了，”卡扬格说。“它留下的是遗产、基础设施、场馆和人员。我们希望这种涟漪效应不会消失。它有很大潜力和机会成为一个光辉的开端。”
“Seeing it (Dakar) come together has been great,” Kayange said. “What it leaves behind is legacy, infrastructure, venues, personnel. We hope the ripple effect does not die. There is a lot of potential and opportunity for it to be a shining start.”