Uganda’s young swimmers ride the Waves of Dakar with personal bests and close finishes

Team Uganda’s young swimmers have continued to make their presence felt at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, delivering a mixture of heat victories, personal bests and tightly contested races as they take on some of the world’s promising young swimming talents.

Across November 3, 4 and 5, Mark Arthur Mwase, Peterson Inhensiko, Zara Marie Mbanga and Mary Peyton Suubi have carried Uganda’s swimming hopes into the pool at the Complexe Tour de l’Oeuf, showcasing determination and competitive spirit in their respective events.

From Mwase’s heat victory to Mbanga’s personal best and Inhensiko’s narrow finishes, Uganda’s campaign has offered several moments worth celebrating.

November 3: Mwase opens with a heat victory

Mwase set the tone for Uganda’s swimming campaign on November 3, winning the first heat of the men’s 400m freestyle in 4:28.12. Swimming in lane five, he finished ahead of Oman’s Ali Hassan Ahmed and Tanzania’s Okumu Zack in his heat, although his time placed him 22nd in the overall rankings.

The heat victory was an encouraging start for the Ugandan, who demonstrated his tenacity as he beat off Ahmed in the last 3-4 meters to get to the touch pads first.

Mary Peyton Suubi also took to the pool in the women’s 100m breaststroke. She finished fifth in her heat with a time of 1:20.12, placing 17th overall. Suubi clocked 38.05 seconds at the 50m mark before completing the race, gaining valuable experience against a competitive field.

Peterson Inhensiko was Uganda’s representative in the men’s 50m freestyle. Swimming in lane seven of heat four, he clocked 24.73 seconds to finish second, just 0.40 seconds behind the heat winner. The close nature of the race was evident, with positions two to four separated by only 0.14 seconds.

Inhensiko’s performance placed him 21st overall, with the narrow margins underlining just how competitive the sprint event was.

November 4: Mbanga finds her personal best as Inhensiko battles in the butterfly

November 4 brought another opportunity for Uganda’s swimmers to test themselves, with Mbanga and Inhensiko competing in different events.

Mbanga delivered one of Uganda’s notable performances in the women’s 200m individual medley. She finished fifth in the first heat in a time of 2:35.56, a personal best, and ranked 10th overall.

Her race unfolded through splits of 32.42 seconds after the first 50m, 1:14.63 at the 100m mark and 1:58.81 after 150m, before she completed the final 50m to register her personal-best time.

The performance was particularly significant for Mbanga, who had previously competed in the 200m individual medley at the 2025 ISF Under-15 World School Sports Games in Serbia. Her progress in Dakar reflects the value of continued exposure to international competition.

Inhensiko, meanwhile, returned to the pool for the men’s 50m butterfly. Swimming in lane six of heat three, he clocked 27.33 seconds to finish fourth.

He was up against a competitive heat led by Suriname’s swimmer in 26.21 seconds, followed by Bahrain in 26.30 and Angola in 26.87. Inhensiko’s fourth-place finish kept him in the mix in an event where every fraction of a second mattered.

November 5: Inhensiko and Mbanga keep Uganda in the race

The third day of Uganda’s swimming action brought more sprint competition, with Inhensiko taking on the men’s 50m backstroke while Mbanga competed in the women’s 50m breaststroke.

Inhensiko swam in lane six of heat four, recording 28.13 seconds. He finished joint sixth in the heat alongside Moldova’s Chirill Certicovtev, with Portugal’s Miguel Reis Oliveira leading in 26.06 seconds. Croatia’s Jakov Wozdecky followed in 26.88, while Kenya’s Jeremy Rieck completed the top three in 27.49.

Inhensiko’s performance placed him 17th overall, adding another competitive outing to his Dakar campaign.

Mbanga delivered another encouraging performance in the women’s 50m breaststroke. She finished second in heat two with a time of 36.51 seconds, just 0.16 seconds behind Kenya’s Kalombo, who won the heat in 36.35 seconds.

Mbanga’s second-place finish in the heat was a positive result in a closely contested sprint. She had clocked 35.67 seconds in the 50m breaststroke at the Uganda Aquatics Independence Swimming Gala ahead of the Youth Olympic Games, giving context to her performance in Dakar.

While the overall rankings reflect the strength of the international field, the Ugandan swimmers have continued to demonstrate determination, improvement and a willingness to compete.

The swimming programme concludes on November 6, with Mwase still scheduled to compete in the men’s 200m freestyle. He is set to swim in heat one, lane five, offering Uganda one final opportunity to make its mark in the pool at Dakar 2026.

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