Francesca Aina at the 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games
Date of the event:
Francesca Aina, a 17-year-old épée fencer registered with Pro Novara, is announced on 2 November 2026 as the sole representative of Italian fencing at the 2026 Dakar Summer Youth Olympic Games. The athlete competes on 10 November in the women's individual épée event, held at the Dakar Expo Center.[1]
The call-up
Aina is called up as the starting athlete by national team coach Dario Chiadò. On the pistes in Senegal she is coached by maestra Francesca Boscarelli.[1]
The 2026 Dakar Youth Olympic Games
The event, open to athletes aged between 15 and 18, is in its fourth edition after Singapore 2010, Nanjing 2014 and Buenos Aires 2018, and is the first Olympic-branded event ever held in Africa.[1]
The event
Due to the division of continental quotas, Italian fencing is represented in Dakar only in the women's individual épée event, scheduled for 10 November 2026.[1]
Related articles: Novara
Sources
- NovaraToday — 2 November 2026