World Athletics announces qualification system for 2027 Champs
World Athletics has denied the transfer of four Jamaican athletes to represent Turkey.
May 26, 2026
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Athletes will have four different ways to qualify for next year’s World Athletics Championships to be held in Beijing, China in September, it was announced on Tuesday.
While announcing the qualifying standards for each event, World Athletics said athletes can qualify for the nine-day championships, “by achieving the entry standard during the qualification period; by virtue of finishing position at designated competitions; through a wild card; or by world rankings position at the end of the respective ranking period.”
The qualifying period for most of the events, it also said, would start from 23 August 2026 to midnight on 22 August 2027, while qualification for road races, race walking and multi events will have other qualifying periods.
According to World Athletics, “As has been the case for recent global championships, the qualification system will be based on a combination of entry standards and world rankings. For the 2027 World
Championships, the system has been set with the objective of having approximately 40% of the athletes qualifying through entry standards and 60% qualifying through world rankings.
“The approach is designed to ensure that the World Championships continue to bring together the world’s leading athletes across all disciplines, while recognising both exceptional single performances and consistent high-level competition across the qualification period.”
— Paul A Reid