Dakar:UAE sprinter Arwa Ali secured a silver medal in the women's 100 metres at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, achieving a time of 11.41 seconds. This success brings the UAE's official medal count at the event to two, with one gold and one silver.
According to Emirates News Agency, Ali finished behind Nigeria's Rosemary Nwankwo, who claimed the gold medal with a time of 11.16 seconds. Qatar's Dana Salem earned the bronze medal, finishing in 11.48 seconds.
This achievement continues Ali's impressive performance on the continental stage, following her gold medal win in the 100m at the Bahrain 2025 Asian Youth Games, where she set a new Games record three times during the competition.
In other athletics events, UAE athletes Saeed Omar and Aisha Mohammed advanced to the finals in the men's and women's 400m races, respectively. Omar completed his race in 48.33 seconds, while Mohammed clocked 54.89 seconds, both securing third place in their qualifying rounds.
Additionally, Riyan Malhan made history for the UAE by winning the country's first-ever gold medal at the Youth Olympic Games in the boys' singles badminton category, defeating France's Mady Sow in the final. UAE equestrian Alya Almheiri also contributed to the UAE's success by winning gold as part of Team Asia in the continental team competition, although this event is not part of the official Youth Olympic medal programme.
