Dakar 2026 Youth Olympics: Kenya’s Track Prodigy Shares How He Plans to Mine Gold

Kenya has sent one of the biggest delegations to the 2026 Summer Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal but just a few will bring back medals.

At the youth event, set to take place from October 31 to November 13, Team Kenya will have 53 athletes, 43 girls and 10 boys, competing in 13 disciplines in what is the fourth edition of the Games.

Among them are seven from track and field who, like in previous editions, are expected to deliver medals.

Kenya has won a total of 15 medals at the Summer Youth Olympics, eight gold, three silver, and four bronze, all from athletics and in Dakar, this likely to be the case.

That means the athletes selected have the weight of expectations on their shoulders even though they are still very young.

However, among them are some who already know how to win medals on a global stage and will hope to use their experience to deliver success in Senegal.

One of them is 16-year-old David Kapaiko, who will be running the 800m at the Youth Olympics.

“The way I have been training, I feel that gold will come. I am even motivated to train more when I hear them say I am a gold medal prospect,” Kapaiko told Pulse Sports.

Kapiko heads to the Youth Olympics on the back of two successful seasons as he is a gold medalist from the Africa School Games, Africa Youth Games and Eastern Africa Athletics Regional Championships, all which took place in 2025.

This year, he retained his African Youth Games crown before winning silver at the 2026 World U20 Athletics Championships. This is besides running at the Kip Keino Classic and in the Commonwealth Games trials, events he says gave him plenty of experience.

“I have been watching what Emmanuel Wanyonnyi does in the 800m and what Timothy Cheruiyot does in the 1500m. I worked with some of them in the Commonwealth trials,” he added.

Kapaiko has won most of his medals in the 1500m but 800m is a race he has slowly been getting accustomed to and his coach Edcain Mutua feels it will not be long before he hits the heights of some of Kenya’s greats.

“When you look at how David Rudisha used to run and look at David [Kapaiko], he is so focused. He does not look behind or at the fans,” said Mutua, who has been working with Kapaiko since he was 13.

“In 1500, when you look at the way Asbel Kiprop used to run, he stayed with the leading pack and it helped him get a good time. Stay with them, maintain your pace and balance. When you get to the point your coach has said you take off, kick and win gold,” added the tactician.

Kapaiko is a member of coach Mutua’s Emali Athletics Camp and they have been working closely to sharpen him for what awaits him in Dakar with hopes of not just winning gold but also lowering his 800m personal best from of 1:50.21 to between 1:45 and 1:46.