New Delhi, Nov 10 (IANS) World Athletics has released the qualification system for the athletics events at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, outlining the entry standards, qualification periods and quota places for athletes competing at the global sporting event.
The athletics competitions at the LA28 Olympics will be held from July 15 to 30, 2028. The qualification framework, approved by the World Athletics Council, will follow a two-way system, with 40 per cent of the available places expected to be filled through entry standards and the remaining 60 per cent through world rankings.
The athletics programme will feature 48 events, including 23 men’s and 23 women’s competitions, along with two mixed events. The mixed 4x100m relay will make its debut at the Olympic Games, joining the mixed 4x400m relay.
World Athletics has clarified that achieving the entry standard will not automatically guarantee an Olympic place. If the number of athletes meeting the required mark exceeds the available quota in an event, only those with the best performances during the qualification period will secure places. In such cases, no additional athletes will qualify through world rankings.
The qualification windows will vary according to the events. For the marathon, the period will run from November 1, 2026, to April 30, 2028. The 10,000m, combined events, race walks, and relays will have a qualification window from December 19, 2026, to June 18, 2028. For all other track and field events, the period will begin on June 19, 2027, and end on June 18, 2028.
The entry standards include 9.93 seconds in the men’s 100m and 10.96 seconds in the women’s event. In the men’s and women’s 200m, the qualifying marks have been set at 19.95 and 22.25 seconds, respectively. For the men’s marathon, the standard is 2:05:00, while women will need to achieve 2:22:20.
Special qualification rules have also been introduced for road races and relays. The top 56 athletes on the filtered marathon qualification list as of March 19, 2028, will be considered qualified. The first 12 finishers in the half marathon race walk events at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in China on April 9, 2028, will also earn automatic qualification.
In the relay events, the first 14 national Olympic committees at the World Athletics Relays in The Bahamas on April 22 and 23, 2028, will secure Olympic places. Teams will have two opportunities to qualify at the World Relays – if unsuccessful on day one, another chance will be provided on day two of the competition.
–IANS
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