Will Africa get the Olympics? Egypt wants to be the hope for the neglected continent

The Summer Olympic Games will be held in Europe for more than the tenth time. However, countries from other continents, such as Asia, Australia or North and South America, could also enjoy the hosting of the globally popular sporting event. On the contrary, Africa is still waiting for this privilege.

But according to some, “the time has come” for the African continent to host the prestigious event, which traditionally attracts huge numbers of sports enthusiasts and their wallets.

“We cannot claim that the IOC and the Olympics are universal without holding the games on the African continent,” Kamilla Swart-Arries, a sports scientist based at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, told the BBC.

Africa already has some experience in hosting major sporting events. For example, South Africa (JAR) hosted the FIFA World Cup in 2010, 15 years before that it hosted the Rugby World Cup. However, the opportunity to organize the Olympics has not yet arisen, which worries even the head of the IOC, Thomas Bach.

He himself says he is disappointed that he has not been able to bring the Games to Africa during his presidency – which ends in 2025. At least the Youth Olympic Games, which are to be held in the capital of Senegal, Dakar, in 2026, are a consolation for him.

“I would like the Olympics to be held in Africa during my presidency. But in life you need to have a plan B. That was to at least allocate the games to Africa during my presidency. But that didn’t work either, and that’s why we moved on to another dream, which was the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar,” said Bach this January during the Junior Games in Kangwon, South Korea.

Compared to the Children’s and Youth Olympics, however, the “full-fledged” games are a much bigger challenge for individual countries – for example, because of the infrastructure. “Major developing countries have a lot of challenges to overcome in terms of infrastructure compared to developed countries,” Swart-Arries said.

Countries that host major sporting events are also under scrutiny – also due to the economic aspect. A recent example can be Qatar, which hosted the FIFA World Cup in 2022. At that time, NGOs and the media began to draw attention to restrictions on human rights, poor working conditions and discrimination against minorities. Despite a number of controversies, a sporting event took place there.

Social stability was also one of the reasons why in 2004 the Olympic Games were held in Athens instead of the Republic of South Africa. “We submitted the bid between 1995 and 1997, just after the end of apartheid. In terms of Olympic sports, we probably weren’t ready,” explained Swart-Arries.

Despite the fact that social progress has taken place in some countries, according to Swart-Arries, negative stereotypes cannot be shaken off. “If you look at the images that are spread around the world about Africa, it’s mostly negative aspects like AIDS or poor, hungry children,” the sports scientist told Deutsche Welle in an interview.

The general secretary of the Egyptian National Olympic Committee (NOC), Sharif El Erian, on the other hand, thinks it was worth the wait. “It was absolutely right that the Games were not held in Africa earlier,” he told the BBC. He attributes the neglect of Africa primarily to limited opportunities. “If I had to choose three countries with the best facilities in Africa, I would easily choose Egypt, South Africa and Morocco. The rest don’t stand a chance,” he confidently stated to the BBC.

It is not so surprising that it is Egypt that wants to submit a proposal to the IOC to host the games in 2036. The country is even somewhat clear about what facilities it intends to use during the sporting event.

One of them is to be a new stadium for 90,000 spectators, which is located in the still unnamed New Administrative Capital, which is located about 40 kilometers east of Cairo. In addition, the sports complex is aptly called Egypt International Olympic City, i.e. the Egyptian International Olympic City.

Moreover, it is not the first time that the Egyptians have tried to attract the attention of the International Olympic Committee. They have a total of three unsuccessful attempts to host the Olympic Games. The last time they tried to host the Olympic Games was in 2008. But in the end, Cairo was not shortlisted by the IOC.

But a lot has changed since then. “I think Egypt is already ready. The main supporting infrastructure – roads, security, airports and hotels – has been developed very strongly in the last seven or eight years,” El Erian added.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi he has already approved the possible hosting of the Summer Olympics in Egypt. Now the North African country must convince the IOC executive committee that it is a suitable candidate to host the 2036 Summer Olympics.

According to several human rights organizations, Egypt should be worried. Women or members of the LGBT+ community there face discrimination, citizens cannot protest freely, and politically inconvenient people end up in prison.

Despite these doubts, Egypt is still in the game. Proof is also the visit of IOC President Thomas Bach himself in 2022. At that time, Bach inspected both the new administrative capital and the “Olympic” sports complex with an area of ​​92 hectares. “He saw with his own eyes that we are very capable,” said El Erian.

Before Egypt can realize its Olympic dream, the country must deal with competition. More countries are interested in hosting the Olympic Games in 2036. For example, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared that his country will “leave no stone unturned” to “secure” this prestigious event. Mexico or Indonesia are in a similar situation.

Turkey, which has had several unsuccessful attempts, is also expected to announce the same intention. Our neighboring Poland is also interested in hosting the Summer Olympics, as its president Andrzej Duda said last year.

But according to Sam Ramsamy, former president of the South African National Olympic Committee and a former member of the IOC, it is “high time” for Africa to host the Olympics. “It would be beneficial in every way. Whether it’s the economy, human rights, climate change, or development in all aspects,” he described.

However, hosting a sporting event like the Olympics also has a symbolic level, Ramsamy recalled: “The most important thing is that it will be an inspiration for the whole of Africa. We will show that we are not a sleeping giant, but a giant that is awake.”

2024 Olympic Games in Paris