2024 Summer Olympics: Team USA Track and Field Qualifiers explained

The U.S. track and field team is often said to be the hardest team in the world to build, and with good reason: No country has won more Olympic track and field medals (827), and the U.S. has won more medals than the next six countries on the all-time list combined (819).

There are many talented athletes, but only a select few make it to major world championships. For the fifth consecutive year, Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon will be the grueling venue for the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials. Let’s take a closer look at the qualification and selection process for Paris 2024.

How many athletes will qualify in each sport?

Only a maximum of three athletes per country can participate, and unlike the World Athletics Championships, which offer a “wild card” berth (each country gets a fourth spot) to the reigning world champion, there are no byes to the Olympics.

World and Olympic champions and gold medal favorites are not immune to the effects of poor performance at the worst possible time. In 2021, 800m world champion Donavan Brazier finished last in the U.S. final and missed the trip to Tokyo. Keni Harrison, the 100m hurdles star who was a sure bet at the 2016 Rio Olympic Trials, finished sixth and missed out on a spot on the team. Two weeks later, Harrison set a new world record, but that was just consolation prize.

This is also a good time to remind casual track and field spectators that in the sprints (100-400 metres), just one false start can disqualify a runner.

How many qualifying rounds are there?

All sprint and middle distance (800-1,500 metres) races have three qualifying rounds (first round, semi-final and final), while the long distances (3,000-10,000 metres and the race walk) have two rounds or a direct final.

The semi-finals and finals will be held on the same day.

All field events will have one qualifying round and one final round, but the decathlon and heptathlon have no qualifying rounds and marathoners have already had another qualifying event in February.

Is it possible to finish in the top three and still not qualify?

Yes, and this is where it gets a little complicated for some American athletes. Like swimming, there is a minimum time (or distance, for track and field athletes) that must be achieved within the Olympic qualification period. The period for athletes competing in individual events (except the 10,000 meters, marathon, and race walk) is July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024.

For example, the Olympic standard for the women’s 5,000 meters is 14 minutes, 52 seconds. NCAA champion Parker Valby missed that standard by just 0.2 seconds at this month’s NCAA outdoor championships. Not only will Valby need to place in the top three at the trials to guarantee a spot on the team, she must also run at least 14 minutes, 52 seconds. And unlike regular track meets, the championships won’t use pacemakers or wave-light technology to guide runners to a specific time.

As they don’t meet the qualification criteria, their last resort is to finish high in the World Athletics ranking system, which is far too complicated to explain even in an editorial. The final ranking list will be published on July 7.

Here’s an easy way to qualify for the Olympics for Team USA.

and

• Meet the Olympic standards

or

• Achieve a high enough ranking in the world rankings

This will likely only affect athletes in sports where the US has traditionally been weaker, such as long-distance races and some field events, otherwise it wouldn’t be a storyline for, say, the sprint events.

What happens if someone qualifies but isn’t selected for the Olympics?

The next highest ranked player will take their place, provided that he or she also meets the eligibility criteria or has a high enough world ranking.

Prior to the 2020 Olympics, Sha’Carey Richardson was controversially suspended after testing positive for marijuana, so Jenna Prandini, who placed fourth, competed in her place. In the women’s high jump, neither Inika McPherson nor Nicole Green met the qualifying standard, nor did they have a high enough world ranking, so they were replaced by fourth-placed Rachel McCoy and Tinita Butts-Townsend, who had the necessary rankings but did not qualify for the final.

However, the 2016 men’s 20km race walk team did not send any athletes to Rio because none of the top three athletes met the standards or placed.

How do relay teams qualify?

The Olympic Games now use the World Athletics Relays as qualifiers for major championships. At this year’s Bahamas championships, all of the U.S. men’s and women’s 4×100-meter and 4×400-meter teams qualified, as did the mixed (two men, two women) 4×400-meter team. A total of 14 countries in each event needed to place in the top two in the heats or repechage events to qualify for Paris.

How are relay participants selected?

Per USA Track and Field guidelines, three of the five athletes on each relay team must be athletes who are entered in the corresponding individual event (e.g. Noah Lyles is entered in the 100 meters, so will participate on the 4×100 relay team). One athlete may be designated as a reserve or replacement. The selection of the remaining two athletes is at the discretion of the USATF committee, which will also take into account “medical or exceptional circumstances” before an exemption request can be granted.

For this reason, it’s common for athletes who don’t compete in individual events to compete as relay runners (at least for the U.S. team). Assing Mu, who won the 800m in Tokyo, was part of the women’s 4x400m relay team that also won gold.

This year’s men’s 4x400m relay pool is worth keeping an eye on, as Noah Lyles could be selected despite never having entered the 400m at the Olympic Trials and barely running the 400m in his career. His inclusion in the indoor relay has already divided opinion.

Team USA Trials will air on NBC, USA and Peacock from Friday, June 21 through Sunday, June 30. Olympic track and field events begin on Aug. 1 and conclude on Aug. 11.