World Athletics has announced a two-way qualification system for the LA28 Olympics, with 40 per cent of athletics places allocated through entry standards and 60 per cent through world rankings. The framework also introduces new qualification rules and the mixed 4x100m relay event.
World Athletics has announced the qualification system for athletics competitions at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, introducing a two-way qualification process that will determine how athletes secure their places at the global sporting event. The framework outlines entry standards, qualification periods, ranking requirements and quota allocations across all athletics disciplines.
According to the qualification framework approved by the World Athletics Council, the system will follow a combination of entry standards and world rankings. Around 40 per cent of the available Olympic places will be allocated through entry standards, while the remaining 60 per cent will be determined through world rankings.
The athletics competitions at the LA28 Olympics are scheduled to take place from July 15 to 30, 2028. The programme will feature 48 events, comprising 23 men’s events, 23 women’s events and two mixed competitions. One of the major additions will be the mixed 4x100m relay, which will make its debut at the Olympic Games. It will join the existing mixed 4x400m relay as part of the Olympic athletics programme.
World Athletics has also clarified that achieving the required entry standard will not automatically guarantee an athlete a place at the Olympics. If the number of athletes achieving the qualifying mark exceeds the available quota in a particular event, only those with the strongest performances during the designated qualification period will receive Olympic places.
In such circumstances, additional athletes will not be selected through world rankings to fill the remaining positions. This provision is intended to ensure that the available quota is maintained while prioritising the athletes who achieve the required performance levels.
The qualification periods will differ depending on the athletics discipline. For the marathon events, the qualification window will begin on November 1, 2026, and conclude on April 30, 2028.
For the 10,000m, combined events, race walks and relay competitions, the qualification period will run from December 19, 2026, to June 18, 2028. Meanwhile, athletes competing in all other track and field events will have a qualification window from June 19, 2027, to June 18, 2028.
World Athletics has also announced specific entry standards for several major track and field events. In the men’s 100m, athletes will need to achieve 9.93 seconds, while the qualifying standard for the women’s 100m has been set at 10.96 seconds.
For the 200m, the required entry standards are 19.95 seconds in the men’s category and 22.25 seconds in the women’s category. In the marathon, the men’s qualifying mark has been fixed at 2 hours, 5 minutes, while women will need to achieve 2 hours, 22 minutes and 20 seconds.
Special qualification arrangements will also apply to road races and relay competitions. In the marathon, the top 56 athletes on the filtered qualification list as of March 19, 2028, will be considered qualified under the announced system.
In the half marathon race walk events, the first 12 finishers at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in China on April 9, 2028, will secure automatic Olympic qualification.
For relay competitions, the first 14 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) at the World Athletics Relays in The Bahamas on April 22 and 23, 2028, will earn Olympic places. Participating teams will have two opportunities to secure qualification during the competition. Teams that fail to qualify on the first day will receive another opportunity on the second day.
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The newly announced framework provides athletes and national athletics federations with a clearer roadmap for preparing for the LA28 Olympics. With separate qualification windows, performance standards and ranking-based selection, the system will determine the composition of the athletics field for the 2028 Games.
The introduction of the mixed 4x100m relay will also add a new dimension to Olympic athletics, expanding opportunities for both male and female athletes to compete together in another team event.
