By: Kemo Kanyi
The Gambia National Olympic Committee (GNOC) has over the weekend handed over the “battle flag” to participants of the first edition of the Africa School Games to be held in Algeria.
The handing-over ceremony was held at the Football Hotel in Old Yundum on Saturday, July 19, 2025.
This is the first edition of the Africa School Games, organised under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee through the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and Olympic Solidarity.
Bai Dodou Jallow, President of the GNOC, expressed satisfaction with the orientation of the schoolchildren, stating that the National Olympic Committee is confident the preparation, orientation, and training the children received will help them excel in Algeria and represent The Gambia in the best possible way.
“And I am sure that this preparation and arrangement will help you compete with your colleagues and win this competition for The Gambia. We are hopeful, and the confidence we have seen from the athletes tells us that you will not only participate but truly want to compete,” he said.
Mr Jallow urged the participants to be good ambassadors for The Gambia as they represent the country in the next two weeks.
“Your performance, behaviour, and attitude will all reflect the true image of this country. So, please go there, keep that in mind, and represent this country to the best of your abilities. You are all students from various schools, and we are really happy that you have this opportunity, which I am sure some of the experienced coaches here will tell you did not exist for students in this country before,” he said.
The GNOC revealed that the government provided D7 million out of the D9 million budgeted for the event.
The Gambia will participate in six sporting disciplines, including athletics, beach volleyball, basketball 3X3, judo, swimming, and wrestling.
The delegation to Algeria departed Banjul International Airport on Monday morning for the Games.
