Fifteen-year-old Moroccan athlete Maria Saadi won the silver medal in the long jump at the Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, rfi.fr reported on Nov. 9, 2026.
Saadi held the lead in the long jump competition from her opening attempts at the Iba Mar Diop stadium. Italy’s Poko Silvia Canape surpassed the Moroccan competitor with her final jump of the event.
“I was first throughout the event,” Saadi told reporters, according to rfi.fr. “It doesn’t matter. It’s sport, that’s how it is.”
Wrapped in a national flag, Saadi smiled while speaking to the mixed zone after the competition.
“I am really very proud,” Saadi said, as reported by rfi.fr. “I made a lot of sacrifices to manage to get a medal. The long jump is really very hard.”
Saadi trains in both the long jump and the 100-meter sprint, having started her athletics career at a small club in Casablanca. She does not have a real preference between the two disciplines, though she finds the long jump less stressful because it offers multiple attempts.
At the beginning, she did not believe she could reach this level because her standard was not very good. Her grandmother encouraged her to pursue both disciplines. She would like to dedicate a future medal to her “club, Anfa Athlétisme de Casablanca.”
Prior to her podium finish in Dakar, Saadi set a Moroccan record in the 60-meter indoor sprint with a time of 7.48 seconds at the French U18 championships in Liévin on Feb. 21, 2026.
Looking ahead, the young athlete looks to those who have already reached the heights she targets, citing American long jump world champion Tara Davis-Woodhall and 100-meter world champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden.
