Samsung Electronics is using Galaxy smartphones at an Olympic event being held in Africa for the first time. Samsung Electronics is taking part in the 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games, which opened on Oct. 31 in Dakar, Senegal, as the International Olympic Committee's official partner in wireless communications, the company said on Sunday. The event runs through Nov. 13, with about 2,700 youth athletes competing in 25 sports.

A program introduced for the first time at this Youth Olympic Games is called “Victory Selfie.” Athletes take selfies themselves on the podium at medal ceremonies using Galaxy smartphones. Samsung Electronics also plans to deploy the Galaxy S26 Ultra alongside broadcast cameras for skateboarding and taekwondo coverage to deliver different footage to viewers worldwide, it said.

An experience space called the “Samsung Open Station” will be set up in the athletes' village. Athletes can use Galaxy products there while interacting with national teams from other countries. At the “Victory Wall,” they create Olympic-themed photos using Galaxy AI, and at “Victory Talk,” they record short-form videos with messages to their future selves. The videos will be stored until the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. At the “Victory Photo Zone,” they can take commemorative photos with an actual podium backdrop.

Samsung Electronics' Olympic sponsorship began as a local sponsor of the 1988 Seoul Olympics. From the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics, it worked as an official IOC partner, and in 2010 it expanded its support to the Youth Olympic Games. Across seven Olympics, including the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, it provided participating athletes with the “Galaxy Olympic Edition.”

Choi Seung-eun (최승은), head of the Mobile Marketing Center at Samsung Electronics' MX Business, said, “The Youth Olympic Games are an important stage for young athletes to discover their potential and grow for the future.” She added, “Samsung Electronics will support the next generation of promising athletes so they can take on challenges, learn, and fully enjoy special moments in life through hands-on wireless technology experiences.”