As athletes and spectators from around the world fill the streets of Senegal for the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, missionaries and local believers are praying the event will leave behind more than medals and memories.
For Carson West, an International Mission Board missionary serving in Senegal, the Games represent a unique opportunity not only to engage visitors with the gospel but also to mobilize local churches to take a more active role in evangelism long after the Olympic flame is extinguished.
“This is the first Olympic event ever held on the continent of Africa,” West said. “For us, it was an opportunity to ask, ‘What are we going to do with this?’”
History of Youth Olympic Games
The Youth Olympic Games, which began Oct. 31 and end Nov. 13, are taking place across three host cities: Dakar, Diamniadio and Saly. Event organizers expect nearly 2,700 athletes, ages 14–17, to participate in 35 sports and represent more than 200 delegations.
The Games have drawn a million spectators — and West reported more than 6,000 event volunteers are staffing all the venues.
With so many people gathering in Senegal, West and his team concentrated on preparing Senegalese churches for evangelistic opportunities.
“We could run and hide, or we could do this thing,” West said, recalling an early conversation with teammates. “We decided we were going to do this thing.”
West serves as team leader for IMB work in Senegal, where ministry efforts focus on three areas: gospel engagement, church advancement and community development. The Youth Olympic outreach naturally aligns with the first two priorities.
“Our approach has been to mobilize the local church,” he said. “This is their backyard.”
Instead of relying on a large influx of international volunteers, though there is one volunteer team from the United States serving, the strategy has centered on equipping local believers. Senegal has four Baptist churches in the greater Dakar area. Many leaders representing the congregations, as well as other ministry partners, participated in evangelism training designed specifically for the Games.
Key outreach method
A key outreach method involves trading commemorative pins, a familiar Olympic tradition. Volunteers use the exchange as a natural conversation starter before offering gospel-centered materials. Each pin is accompanied by a card featuring a QR code connected to a digital engagement platform adapted from previous Olympic and World Cup outreaches.
Visitors who scan the code are directed to online resources and can connect with trained digital responders. Experienced volunteers in the U.S. are helping provide follow-up conversations.
“We’re building on strategies that have been used effectively in previous Olympic Games,” West said. “It’s an easy, non-intimidating way to start gospel conversations.”
The effort extends beyond Dakar. IMB teams and church partners are positioned in each of the three host cities. An IMB team, which includes three global missionary partners, is helping coordinate outreach efforts in Diamniadio, and an IMB team along with a Baptist church is organizing efforts in Saly.
West believes the greatest potential impact may be felt not among international visitors but among Senegalese believers themselves.
Senegal is approximately 95% Muslim and 0.2% evangelical. In a country where 269 people die daily without Christ, West believes the urgency to call and equip local believers to share their faith has never been greater.
“My biggest prayer is that this would be an opportunity for the local church to realize they can be light in such a dark place,” West said. “Many believers are afraid to do that because it’s difficult.”
He hopes the visibility and excitement surrounding the Olympic Games will encourage churches to develop lasting habits of evangelism.
“If the local church could just get a grasp of this and actually get out into the streets on a daily basis, that could become a catalyst for greater church-planting efforts and more people coming to know Jesus,” he said.
Recent milestone
West pointed to a recent milestone that has encouraged believers across the country: the completion of the first full Wolof-language Bible after 63 years of translation work. The Wolof people remain one of the least reached groups in the country.
“That Bible is now in Senegal,” he said. “We hope it will lead many people to know who God is and have access to His Word.”
As the Games continue, West asks Southern Baptists to pray for open doors, meaningful gospel conversations and boldness among local believers.
Ways to pray
“Pray for opportunities for a pin to be traded and for the gospel to be proclaimed,” he said. “Pray that God would bring people whose hearts He is already working in and allow them to encounter volunteers and local church members.”
West also expressed gratitude to Southern Baptists whose gifts through the Cooperative Program and Lottie Moon Christmas Offering® make both missionary presence and outreach efforts possible.
“We’re here because they support us prayerfully and financially,” he said, regarding Southern Baptists. “Everything from training local churches to purchasing pins for outreach is possible because of their generosity. They are as much a part of this work as we are, and we are grateful.”
Names have been changed for security.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Chris Doyle and originally published by the International Mission Board.
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