On Saturday evening, the Senegalese capital, Dakar, received the Olympic flame with music and dance, in conjunction with a march in which 100 women participated, as part of the countdown to the start of the first Olympic sporting event to be held in Africa, which is the Youth Olympic Games.
More than 100 people gathered at Place du Souvenir Africaine, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in Dakar, surrounded by portraits of prominent figures from Africa and its communities around the world, to receive the flame before the start of the Youth Olympic Games next month.
The Olympic Games will be held from October 31 to November 13, with the participation of about 2,700 young athletes competing in 35 sports in Dakar and the nearby cities of Diamniadio and Sali.
The first Youth Olympic Games were held in Singapore in 2010, a scaled-down version of the Olympic Games for athletes aged 15 to 18 years.
Yesterday, Saturday, the torch was carried by 100 Senegalese women known as Lingir, a title given to queens or women of the royal family in the Wolof language, one of the main languages in Senegal. The group included influential figures from the fields of culture, sports and economics.
Dressed in traditional orange and gold loose-fitting dresses with yellow headdresses, the participants carried the torch to Place du Sauvonniere Africain.
Senegalese basketball legend Mami-Maty Mbeng lit the Olympic flame during the welcome ceremony.
International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry, from Zimbabwe, said hosting the Olympics was a “proud moment” for Senegal and the continent.
Coventry added to the audience: “Everyone who comes to Senegal in a few weeks will leave knowing that Africa and Senegal are capable and unstoppable, and that our young generation will change the world.”[instruction_break]The flame left the Greek capital, Athens, last Thursday, after being illuminated by the sun’s rays using a parabolic mirror in accordance with Olympic tradition, before being delivered to Senegal at the Panathenaic Stadium.
On Monday, the flame begins a 3,600-km journey through Senegal, passing through the country's 14 provinces, and is carried by more than 400 Senegalese runners, before returning to the capital to attend the official opening ceremony.
Veteran Argentine star Lionel Messi scored his 19th goal this season, topping the list of top scorers in the American Professional Soccer League, during his team Inter Miami's 2-2 draw with leaders Nashville at dawn on Sunday.
Inter Miami seemed to be on its way to achieving its first victory over Nashville this season, when Messi scored a goal with a shot with his left foot in the 62nd minute, giving his team a 2-1 lead, but Nashville player Sam Surrig equalized with his second goal in the match in the first minute of stoppage time, keeping his team unbeaten against Inter Miami in four matches this season.
The tie also maintained the nine-point difference between Nashville, the leader, and Inter Miami, which is second in the Eastern Conference standings.
Nashville took a one-goal lead just four minutes into the game, when Sorig took advantage of an Andy Nager pass and scored his 14th goal of the season.
Inter Miami equalized in the 19th minute after Nashville defender Reid Baker-Whiting scored an own goal from a corner kick.
Messi, who won the Ballon d'Or for the best player in the world eight times, succeeded in scoring during the second half, after receiving a pass from Rodrigo De Paul outside the penalty area, and shot with his left foot into the left corner, scoring his 19th goal in the American League this season.
Inter Miami was looking to avenge its 4-1 loss to Nashville in the last confrontation between the two teams on August 15. Nashville had also previously eliminated Miami from the CONCACAF Champions Cup earlier in the season. [instruction_break]Nashville's next match will be held at home against the Chicago Fire next Saturday, while Inter Miami will host Cruz Azul, the Mexican league champion, on Wednesday in the Campeones Cup, which is An annual tournament that brings together the NBA champion and the Mexican Super Cup champion.
Carlos Sainz will start from 20th place, on his home soil, in the “Spanish Grand Prix” in the Formula 1 World Championship for cars after being subjected to a penalty of falling 3 places. Due to the disability of Cadillac driver, Valtteri Bottas, during qualifying, yesterday (Saturday).
The 32-year-old Williams driver was subjected to a penalty; Due to Bottas being obstructed at turns six and seven during the first stage of qualifying.
“The team failed to notify the driver of car number 55 that car number 77 was approaching it on a fast lap, and the driver did not take any action to make way for the oncoming car,” the FIA said in a statement.
He added: “The stewards concluded that car No. 55 unnecessarily obstructed car No. 77.”
This penalty causes Sainz to fall to 20th place on the starting grid, while his Spanish colleague Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin driver, Sergio Perez from the Cadillac team, and Bottas advance one place each in today’s (Sunday) race, consisting of 57 laps, which is the first Formula 1 grand prix race held on the “Madring Circuit.”
Sainz, a former Ferrari driver and four-race winner, has endured a disappointing season and currently sits 16th in the Drivers' Championship with 6 points. Williams is ranked ninth in the constructors' standings, which includes 11 teams.
Formula 1 champion Lando Norris took first place for the McLaren team thanks to a brilliant final lap at the Madring Circuit, beating championship leader Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes driver, by 0.011 seconds.
