{"id":88045,"date":"2026-11-04T19:00:53","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T00:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/?p=88045"},"modified":"2026-11-04T17:09:15","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T22:09:15","slug":"beyond-the-medal-samsung-helps-young-athletes-explore-what-comes-next-at-dakar-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/beyond-medal-samsung-young-athletes-explore-comes-next-dakar-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond the Medal: Samsung Helps Young Athletes Explore What Comes Next at Dakar 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026 are under way in Senegal from October 31 to November 13, bringing together some 2,700 young athletes across 25 sports for the first Olympic event ever held on the African continent.<\/p>\n

As a Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner, Samsung Electronics is supporting the Games with Galaxy technology<\/a> \u2014 from Victory Selfie and broadcast integrations to the Samsung Open Station, an experience space inside the Youth Olympic Village. Having supported the Youth Olympic Games since the inaugural edition in Singapore in 2010, Samsung is going beyond technology at Dakar 2026 to support young athletes\u2019 personal growth as well.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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For the athletes competing at Dakar 2026, reaching the Olympic stage is the result of years of dedication. But some of the most lasting lessons come from what happens along the way \u2014 overcoming setbacks, building resilience, discovering what matters beyond results.<\/p>\n

That is why, on November 3, Samsung hosted \u201cBeyond the Medal: Your Journey Shapes What Comes Next,\u201d a mentoring session at the Samsung Open Station inside the Youth Olympic Village. By bringing in athletes who have walked the Olympic path before them, the session aimed to inspire pride and motivation in the next generation \u2014 and to share the spirit of openness at the heart of Samsung\u2019s Olympic partnership.<\/p>\n

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\u25b2 The mentoring session held at the Samsung Open Station. (Copyright: IOC\/ Franco Arland)<\/p><\/div>\n

Two IOC Athlete Role Models1<\/sup><\/a> – Senegalese canoe slalom Olympian Jean-Pierre Bourhis (31) and Ugandan swimmer Jamila Lunkuse (29) – joined New Zealand tennis bronze medalist Marcus Daniell (36) for a conversation with young athletes.<\/p>\n

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\u25b2 (From left) Jean-Pierre Bourhis (Senegal, Canoe slalom), Jamila Lunkuse (Uganda, Swimming) and Marcus Daniell(New Zealand, Tennis) (Copyright: Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Moderated by Lefa Makgato<\/a>, CSR Manager at Samsung Electronics Africa, the session brought the three mentors together with 28 young athletes from 12 countries to share the journeys that shaped them \u2014 and offer a guide for exploring where life beyond sport might lead.<\/p>\n

Open the Way: Finding Your Own Path<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Makgato opened by asking each mentor where their Olympic journey began.<\/p>\n

For Bourhis, who represented Senegal at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 and is featured in Samsung\u2019s \u201cVoices of Galaxy: Paddling for the Future<\/a>,\u201d the dream took shape in 2008, when Togo\u2019s Benjamin Boukpeti won a bronze medal in kayaking at Beijing 2008.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a kid, I realized an African paddler could reach the podium,\u201d he said. \u201cRio 2016 showed me the way could be opened. Now my job is to keep it open for others.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u25b2 Jean-Pierre Bourhis (Senegal), IOC Athlete Role Model at Samsung Mentoring Session. (Copyright: IOC\/ Franco Arland)<\/p><\/div>\n

Lunkuse, who made her Olympic Games debut at 15, recalled that swimming began with friendship rather than ambition. \u201cI wasn\u2019t thinking about medals or the Olympics,\u201d she said. \u201cI just enjoyed being part of something with my friends, and that\u2019s what built my love for the sport.\u201d<\/p>\n

Daniell, who ended New Zealand\u2019s 109-year wait for an Olympic tennis medal at Tokyo 2020, pointed to choosing tennis over football at 14. \u201cBecause I\u2019d given up a sport I loved, I knew I had to fully commit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Break Your Boundaries: Learning Through Challenges<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The conversation then turned to the biggest challenges each mentor faced.<\/p>\n

With almost no whitewater facilities in Senegal, Bourhis had to build his training base in France \u2014 while holding down a full-time job as an engineer in electric vehicle repair. \u201cAs an engineer, I see a limit as a problem to solve, not a wall,\u201d he said. \u201cI train before work, during lunch or late at night. What keeps me going is purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lunkuse spoke openly about the anxiety she faced ahead of Rio 2016. \u201cI became so focused on qualifying times that I no longer enjoyed it,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was only when I took time away that I could see what I was going through and what help I needed \u2014 and that\u2019s what got me to Rio 2016.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u25b2 Jamila Lunkuse (Uganda), IOC Athlete Role Model at Samsung Mentoring Session. (Copyright: IOC\/ Franco Arland)<\/p><\/div>\n

Daniell described a knee injury in 2022 that kept him out for nearly two years. \u201cWhat got me through was having something bigger than tennis,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone fails. Those who last are the ones who learn to pick themselves up when they fall.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond the Game: Turning Experience Into Opportunity<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Finally, Makgato asked how the lessons of sport carried into what came next.<\/p>\n

Through nonprofit work, Bourhis is building a canoeing ecosystem in Senegal. \u201cWe\u2019re building it step by step \u2014 and building canoes locally makes the sport more affordable, creates local jobs and leaves a lasting legacy,\u201d he said. \u201cI want to give the next generation the tools to build their own way.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Lunkuse, a youth coach and World Aquatics Athletes\u2019 Committee member, urges young athletes to look beyond results. \u201cResults do not define your value,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Similarly, Daniell \u2013 an IOC Athletes\u2019 Commission member and founder of High Impact Athletes, a nonprofit connecting athletes with charities \u2013 advised: \u201cLook for a goal beyond personal success. For me, that was what kept pushing me forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u25b2 Marcus Daniell (New Zealand), Tokyo 2020 Olympic Medalist at Samsung Mentoring Session. (Copyright: IOC\/ Franco Arland)<\/p><\/div>\n

Opening Possibilities for the Next Generation<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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\u25b2 Lefa Makgato, CSR Manager at Samsung Electronics Africa, moderated the session. (Copyright: IOC\/ Franco Arland)<\/p><\/div>\n

Makgato closed the session with a story of her own. Growing up in a small township in South Africa, she first encountered a computer at 18 \u2014 at one of Samsung\u2019s Solar Powered Internet Schools. She later joined Samsung Electronics Africa, where she now leads CSR programs across the continent, including Solve for Tomorrow, giving the next generation the kind of opportunity she once received. Having seen firsthand how a single opportunity can change a life, she had good reason to stand before the young athletes that day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know firsthand how access to technology and education opens doors you may never have imagined. Where you are today doesn\u2019t determine where you\u2019re going,\u201d she said. \u201cWe wanted to encourage young athletes to stay open to new ideas and recognize the potential they have to shape their own futures.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u25b2 (From left) Jamila Lunkuse, Jean-Pierre Bourhis and Marcus Daniell take a selfie at the Samsung Open Station. (Copyright: IOC\/ Franco Arland)<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

1<\/a> IOC Athlete Role Models (ARMs) have been part of the Youth Olympic Games since Singapore 2010. Selected by International Federations for each sport, these experienced Olympians stay on site to speak with young athletes and lead workshops on topics such as career management and injury prevention, helping shape the athletes of tomorrow.<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Olympic Athlete Role Models Jean-Pierre Bourhisand Jamila Lunkuse, and Olympic medalist Marcus Daniell share the moments that shaped their journeys at a Samsung mentoring session inside the Youth Olympic Village<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29720,29718],"tags":[25940,40,817,126],"blue-badge":[],"class_list":["post-88045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-product-mobile","category-product","tag-galaxy","tag-mobile","tag-olympics","tag-smartphone"],"acf":{"turn_off_retargeting":false},"fimg_mobile_url":"https:\/\/img.us.news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/04165903\/Photo-3-600x600.jpg","fimg_url":"https:\/\/img.us.news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/04165903\/Photo-3-424x283.jpg","primary_category":{"term_id":29720,"name":"Mobile","slug":"product-mobile","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":29720,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":29718,"count":1057,"filter":"raw","term_link":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/category\/product\/product-mobile\/","term_path":"product\/product-mobile"},"badge":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88045","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88045"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88045\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88055,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88045\/revisions\/88055"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88045"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88045"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88045"},{"taxonomy":"blue-badge","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.samsung.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blue-badge?post=88045"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}