A new urban culture square was inaugurated at the beginning of October by the mayor of Dakar, Barthélémy Dias, in the popular district of HLM-Patte d’oie, in the commune of Grand-Yoff. A place mainly dedicated to urban sports such as skateboarding, rollerblading or BMX. Sports that are increasingly popular in the Senegalese capital.
Published on: 11/24/2023 – 5:19 p.m.
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With our correspondent in Dakar, Théa Ollivier
In the huge blue bowl of the new skatepark, young Senegalese people – rollerblades or skateboards on their feet – take turns to try new tricks. Mamadou Cissokho, 14, had just started skateboarding a month earlier. He now trains every day: “ I saw people on TV doing skateboarding competitions. Coming here, I saw the big guys skateboarding, they taught me how to do it. My dream: to go far away and compete. »
Among the former skateboarders who teach younger people, there is Malick Cissé, 29, who started in 2015. “ We try to skate, to motivate young people to learn to ride, to go down ramps, little things like that. They understand that:Oh yes, it can be done here, we didn’t know there was skateboarding in Africa!“ »
Urban hub…
Skateboarding, rollerblading, BMX, scootering, so many urban sports that are growing in Senegal. This enthusiasm delights skateboarder Sete Awad, even if he still encounters difficulties. “ There aren’t too many places to skate and sometimes when you find one they kick you out of there, he said. It’s quite difficult to find bars, the right equipment and all that. But we love it, we manage and we don’t give up. »
To respond to this enthusiasm, the city of Dakar therefore opened the Place des Cultures Urbains, for sport, but also the arts. The square is also a concert venue, with walls open to graffiti artists and stands for the public. “ Dakar is a big capital, there are many frameworks for artistic expression, it’s true, but we wanted to think about an urban hub, where we could have a space dedicated to urban cultures, explains Amadou Fall Ba, the project coordinator. We thought of a space of 2 500 square meters which is located in HLM-Patte d’oie in the commune of Grand Yoff. (…) Senegal will host for the first time an Olympic event on the African continent, we must support young amateurs, prepare the next generation, and as there are two disciplines of urban culture which have become Olympic disciplines, notably breaking and skateboarding, we think that the Place des Cultures Urbaines will play a central role as a place of supervision and physical and mental preparation, to allow at least Senegal to have medals. »
In 2026, the Youth Olympic Games will take place in Senegal.
