How Team Canada can qualify for Paris 2024: Part 3


Before any athlete can compete at the Olympic Games, they need to qualify.

For Paris 2024, the qualification period begins more than two years before the Opening Ceremony is set to take place on the Seine.

Fighter jets leave five trails of colour as they fly past the Eiffel Tower
The French Aerial Patrol fly by the Eiffel Tower and over the Olympics fan zone in Paris, Sunday, Aug. 8, 2021. Celebrations were held in Paris Sunday as part of the handover ceremony of Tokyo 2020 to Paris 2024, as Paris will be the next Summer Games host in 2024. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

In some sports, quota spots are allocated directly to the athletes who earn them. In other sports, the quota spots go to the National Olympic Committee (NOC), which means there is a separate selection process within the country — such as national trials — to fill those spots.

Some sports have direct qualification events while others have qualification based on a cumulative world ranking list or may use a combination of both pathways.

Paris 2024 Sports and Events

Read on for a sport-by-sport breakdown of Team Canada’s qualification pathway to Paris 2024. Only events in which Canadian athletes are eligible to compete are included.  

It’s not always simple, so to see the international qualification systems in full for each sport, click on the provided links. As Team Canada selection policies become available, these will also be included.  

As there are a lot of summer Olympic sports, we’ve broken this list into parts.

Part 1 (A-D)Part 2 (E-R) | Part 3 (S-W)  

Sailing

Total Athletes: 330 (165 men, 165 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 14 (7 men, 7 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify a maximum of one boat per event.

World Sailing Olympic Qualification System

2023 Sailing World Championships August 10-20, 2023 in Scheveningen, NetherlandsMen’s and Women’s Windsurfing (iQFoil)11 boats per gender
Men’s and Women’s Kiteboarding (Formula Kite)  8 boats per gender
Men’s and Women’s Dinghy
(ILCA 7 / ILCA 6)
16 boats per gender
Men’s and Women’s Skiff
(49er / 49erFX)
10 boats per gender
Mixed Dinghy (470)8 boats
Mixed Multihull (Nacra 17)9 boats
2024 ILCA World ChampionshipsILCA 6 – January 3-10, 2024 in Mar del Plata, Argentina
ILCA 7  – January 24-31, 2024 in Adelaide, Australia
Men’s and Women’s Dinghy7 boats per gender
Continental Qualification Event2023 Pan American Games, October 20-November 5, 2023 in Santiago, Chile Men’s and Women’s
Windsurfing, Kiteboarding, and Skiff
1 boat per gender per event
Men’s and Women’s Dinghy2 boats per gender
Mixed Dinghy and Multihull1 boat per event
2024 Last Chance RegattaApril 18-27, 2024 in Hyeres, FranceMen’s and Women’s
Windsurfing and Kite
5 boats per gender per event
Men’s and Women’s
Dinghy and Skiff
3 boats per gender per event
Mixed Dinghy4 boats
Mixed Multihull3 boats

Shooting

Total Athletes: 340 (170 men, 170 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 24 (12 men, 12 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can enter a maximum of two athletes in each individual event and a maximum of two teams in each of the mixed team events.

ISSF Shooting Olympic Qualification System

2022 World Championships Rifle and PistolOctober 12-25, 2022 in Cairo, Egypt4 spots available in each individual pistol and rifle event
2022 World Championships ShotgunSeptember 22-October 11, 2022 in Osijek, Croatia4 spots available in each individual shotgun event
2022 CAT XIII ChampionshipNovember 9-16, 2022 in Lima, Peru1 spot available in each individual event
2023 Pan American GamesOctober 20-November 5, 2023 in Santiago, Chile1 spot available in air rifle, rifle 3 positions, air pistol 2 spots available in rapid fire pistol, pistol, trap, skeet
2023 World ChampionshipsAugust 14-31, 2023 in location TBD4 spots available in each individual event
2024 CAT XIV ChampionshipsDate TBD in Lima, Peru1 spot available in each individual event
2024 Final Olympic Qualification ChampionshipApril 2024 in location TBD2 spots available in each individual event
Qualification Ranking for the Olympic GamesAugust 14, 2022 -June 9, 20241 spot available in each individual event

Skateboarding

Total Athletes: 88 (44 men, 44 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 12 (6 men, 6 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the athletes by name. There is a maximum of three athletes per NOC per event.

World Skate Skateboarding Olympic Qualification System

All qualification for the men’s and women’s street and park events will be based on the Olympic World Skateboarding Rankings (OWSR) on June 24, 2024. The OWSR counts results dating back to June 22, 2022 at the World Championships, Olympic Qualifier Series, Pro Tour Events, 5-Star Events, and 3-Star Events. Each continent is guaranteed one athlete per event.

Soccer

Total Teams: 16 men (288 athletes), 12 women (216 athletes)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 36 (18 men, 18 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify one team per gender. While there is no age limit in the women’s event, the men’s event is primarily a U-23 tournament with an exception for three over-aged players per team.

FIFA Soccer Olympic Qualification System

Women2022 Concacaf Women’s ChampionshipJuly 4-18, 2022 in Monterrey, MexicoThe top ranked team will qualify for Paris 2024.
The runners-up will play the third-place team in September 2023 for the region’s second Olympic spot.
Men2022 Concacaf Under-20 ChampionshipJune 18-July 4, 2022 in HondurasThe two finalist teams will qualify for Paris 2024.

Sport Climbing

Boulder & Lead Total Athletes: 40 (20 men, 20 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 4 (2 men, 2 women)

Speed Total Athletes: 28 (14 men, 14 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 4 (2 men, 2 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the athletes by name.

IFSC Boulder & Lead Climbing Olympic Qualification System
IFSC Speed Climbing Olympic Qualification System

Boulder & Lead Qualification 2023 IFSC Climbing World ChampionshipsAugust 2023 in Bern, SwitzerlandTop 3 athletes per gender in combined boulder and lead
2023 Pan American GamesOctober 20-November 5, 2023 in Santiago, ChileTop ranked athlete per gender in combined boulder and lead
Olympic Qualifier SeriesMarch-June 2024, locations TBD10 athletes per gender to qualify based on a procedure to be determined
Speed Qualification2023 IFSC Climbing World ChampionshipsAugust 2023 in Bern, SwitzerlandTop 2 athletes per gender in speed
2023 Pan American GamesOctober 20-November 5, 2023 in Santiago, ChileTop ranked athlete per gender in speed
Olympic Qualifier SeriesMarch-June 2024, locations TBD5 athletes per gender to qualify based on a procedure to be determined

Surfing

Total Athletes: 48 (24 men, 24 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 4 (2 men, 2 women)

Whether quota spots are allocated to the athletes by name or to the NOC is dependent on the pathway through which the spot was earned. An NOC can qualify up to three athletes of a gender if a quota spot is earned via the team results of the 2022 or 2024 ISA World Surfing Games.

ISA Surfing Olympic Qualification System

World Surf League Championship Tour RankingJanuary 2023-September 2023Top 10 men and top 8 women will earn quota spots by name
2023 Pan American GamesOctober 20-November 5, 2023 in Santiago, ChileTop ranked man and top ranked woman will earn quota spots by name
2024 ISA World Surfing GamesMay 2024 in location TBDTop 5 men and top 7 women will earn quota spots by name.
Top ranked men’s team and top ranked women’s team will each earn 1 quota spot for their NOC.
2022 ISA World Surfing GamesSeptember 17-24, 2022 in Huntington Beach, CaliforniaTop ranked men’s team and top ranked women’s team will each earn 1 quota spot for their NOC

Swimming

Total Athletes: 852
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 52 (26 men, 26 women) 

FINA Swimming Olympic Qualification System

An NOC can enter a maximum of two athletes per individual event and one team per relay event. 

To be eligible to compete in an individual event, an athlete must achieve an entry time standard in a FINA-approved competition from March 1, 2023 to June 23, 2024. 

There are two categories of standard: Olympic Qualifying Time (OQT) and Olympic Consideration Time (OCT). The OQT is the faster of the two. An NOC can enter two athletes in the same individual event only if both have achieved the OQT. 

Athletes with the OCT will only be invited to compete if the overall quota of 852 athletes has not been reached after accounting for athletes qualified via OQT, relays, and universality. 

There will be a maximum of 16 teams qualified for each relay. Three spots in each event will go to the medal-winning NOCs at the FINA World Championships taking place July 14-30, 2023 in Fukuoka, Japan. 

The remaining spots will go to the 13 fastest NOCs in the preliminary heats of each event at the FINA World Championships taking place February 2-18, 2024 in Doha, Qatar.

The Canadian Swimming Trials, which will serve as the primary selection event for Team Canada, are planned to take place May 13-19, 2024.

Paris 2024 Olympic Swimming Entry Time Standards:

Men OQTMen OCTEventWomen OQTWomen OCT
21.9622.0750m Freestyle24.7024.82
48.3448.58100m Freestyle53.6153.88
1:46.261:46.79200m Freestyle1:57.261:57.85
3:46.783:47.91400m Freestyle4:07.904:09.14
7:51.657:54.01800m Freestyle8:26.718:29.24
15:00.9915:05.491500m Freestyle16:09.0916:13.94
53.7454.01100m Backstroke59.991:00.29
1:57.501:58.09200m Backstroke2:10.392:11.04
59.4959.79100m Breaststroke1:06.791:07.12
2:09.682:10.33200m Breaststroke2:23.912:24.63
51.6751.93100m Butterfly57.9258.21
1:55.781:56.36200m Butterfly2:08.432:09.07
1:57.941:58.53200m Individual Medley2:11.472:12.13
4:12.504:13.76400m Individual Medley 4:38.534:39.92

Swimming – Open Water 

Total Athletes: 44 (22 men, 22 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 4 (2 men, 2 women) 

Depending on how the quota spots are earned, they may be allocated to the athletes by name or to the NOC. 

FINA Open Water Swimming Olympic Qualification System 

2023 FINA World Championships July 14-30, 2023 in Fukuoka, JapanTop 3 athletes per gender in the 10km event will qualify themselves  
2024 FINA World ChampionshipsFebruary 2-18, 2024 in Doha, Qatar Top 13 athletes per gender in the 10km event will earn quota spots for their NOC, not counting those already qualified 

Top ranked eligible athlete per gender in the 10km event from each of the five continents will earn quota spots for their NOC 

Table Tennis

Total Athletes: 172 (86 men, 86 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 6 (3 men, 3 women) 

Quota spots are allocated to the athletes by name in the singles and mixed doubles events. Quota spots are allocated to the NOC for the team events. 

An NOC can enter a maximum of two athletes in each of the men’s and women’s singles events, a maximum of one team of three athletes in each of the men’s and women’s team events, and a maximum of one pair in the mixed doubles event. 

ITTF Olympic Table Tennis Qualification System 

Team Qualification Pan American Continental Qualification EventDate and location TBDTop two teams per gender will earn quota spots for their NOCs 
2024 World Team Table Tennis Championships (WTTTC)February 16-25, 2024 in Busan, South Korea The 8 quarterfinal teams per gender will earn quota spots for their NOCs
Team World RankingCloses immediately following WTTTCTop ranked team per gender not yet qualified will earn quota spots for their NOC 
Mixed Doubles Qualification Pan American Continental Qualification EventDate and location TBDTop two pairs will earn quota spots for themselves 
World Qualification EventMarch or April 2024, location TBD The 4 semifinal pairs will earn quota spots for themselves 
Mixed Doubles World RankingCloses May 7, 2024Top 5 pairs not yet qualified will earn quota spots for themselves 
Singles Qualification The 16 NOCs qualified for each team event will receive two singles quotas for the respective gender 
Pan American Continental Qualification Event May 6-12, 2024, location TBD 5 spots available per gender 
Singles World RankingCloses June 18. 2024 Up to 15 athletes per gender, depending on quotas available after mixed doubles quotas are allocated 

Taekwondo

Total Athletes: 128 (64 men, 64 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 8 (4 men, 4 women)

World Taekwondo Olympic Qualification System

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify a maximum of one athlete per event.

An NOC can only earn the maximum quota spots via global qualification procedures. An NOC can qualify a maximum of two athletes per gender via continental qualification procedures.

Twenty quota spots per gender will be allocated based on the World Taekwondo Olympic Ranking, which will close following the Grand Prix Final taking place December 2-3, 2023. The top five athletes per weight category will each earn quota spots for their NOC.

Four quota spots per gender will be allocated through the Grand Slam Champions Series taking place December 16-17, 2023. The top ranked athlete per weight category will earn quota spots for their NOC.

The remaining quota spots will be allocated via Continental Qualification Tournaments. For Pan America, the top two athletes in each weight category will earn quota spots for their NOC.

Tennis

Total Athletes: 172 (86 men, 86 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 12 (6 men, 6 women)

ITF Tennis Olympic Qualification System

Quota spots are allocated to the athletes by name. An NOC can qualify a maximum of four athletes in each of the men’s and women’s singles events, a maximum of two teams in each of the men’s and women’s doubles events, and a maximum of one team in mixed doubles.

Most quota spots will be allocated as Direct Acceptances based on the ATP (men) and WTA (women) rankings on June 10, 2024.

In each of the men’s and women’s 64-player singles tournaments, there will be 56 spots for Direct Acceptances. There can be four quota spots per event for continental qualification, including two per event via the 2023 Pan American Games. Two quota spots per event are reserved for Olympic gold medallists or Grand Slam champions who did not qualify via their ATP or WTA singles ranking.

In each the men’s and women’s 32-team doubles tournaments, Direct Acceptances will be given to the top 10 athletes in each of the ATP and WTA Doubles Rankings, provided they have an eligible partner. There will be 14 more spots in each tournament allocated based on team Combined Ranking, which is determined by adding together the best Singles or Doubles Ranking of the two team members. How the remaining spots in the draws are allocated is dependent on whether the overall total athlete quota has been met. Athletes qualified in singles could be considered for doubles.

Entries for the 16-team mixed doubles tournament will be selected from athletes who have already qualified for the men’s and women’s singles or doubles tournaments. There will be 15 Direct Acceptances based on team Combined Ranking.

Triathlon

Total Athletes: 110 (55 men, 55 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 6 (3 men, 3 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can only qualify three spots for a gender if it has three athletes ranked in the top 30 of the World Triathlon Individual Olympic Qualification Ranking. Otherwise, there is a maximum of two athletes per gender. Any NOC with at least two men and two women qualified is eligible to enter the mixed relay.

World Triathlon Olympic Qualification System

Mixed Relay Qualification2022 World Triathlon Mixed Relay ChampionshipsJune 26, 2022 in Montreal, QuebecTop ranked NOC qualifies 2 spots per gender
2023 World Triathlon Mixed Relay ChampionshipsJuly 13-16, 2023 in Hamburg, GermanyTop ranked NOC qualifies 2 spots per gender
World Triathlon Mixed Relay Olympic Qualification RankingCloses March 25, 2024Top 6 NOCs qualify 2 spots per gender
2024 World Triathlon Mixed Relay Olympic Qualification EventDate and location TBDTop 2 NOCs qualify 2 spots per gender
Individual QualificationWorld Triathlon Individual Olympic Qualification RankingMay 27, 2022 – May 27, 2024Top 26 athletes per gender earn quotas for NOC
World Triathlon RankingCloses May 27, 2024Top ranked NOC from each continent not yet qualified will earn one quota per gender

Volleyball

Total Teams: 12 men (144 athletes), 12 women (144 athletes)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 24 (12 men, 12 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify one team per gender.

FIVB Volleyball Olympic Qualification System

Olympic Qualification TournamentsMen: September 30-October 8, 2023, locations TBD Women: September 16-24, 2023, locations TBDTop 2 NOCs in each of the three tournaments for each gender will qualify 
World RankingMen: June 24, 2024
Women: June 17, 2024
5 NOCs per gender will qualify, with priority to NOCs from continents not yet qualified and then the top remaining teams

Volleyball – Beach

Total Athletes: 96 (48 men, 48 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 8 (4 men, 4 women)

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify a maximum of two men’s teams and two women’s teams.

FIVB Beach Volleyball Olympic Qualification System

2023 FIVB Beach Volleyball World ChampionshipsOctober 6-15, 2023 in MexicoTop ranked team per gender
Olympic Ranking ListCloses June 10, 202417 teams per gender
NORCECA Beach Volleyball Continental Qualification eventDate and location TBDTop ranked team per gender

Water Polo

Total Teams: 12 men (144 athletes), 10 women (120 athletes)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 24 (12 men, 12 women) 

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify one team per gender. 

FINA Water Polo Olympic Qualification System 

2023 FINA World ChampionshipsJuly 14-30, 2023 in Fukuoka. Japan Top 2 NOCs per gender 
2023 Pan American GamesOctober 20-November 5, 2023 in Santiago, ChileTop ranked NOC per gender not yet qualified 
2024 FINA World Championships February 2-18, 2024 in Doha, Qatar Top 4 men’s NOCs and top 2 women’s NOCs not yet qualified 

Weightlifting

Total Athletes: 120 (60 men, 60 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 6 (3 men, 3 women)

IWF Weightlifting Olympic Qualification System

Quota spots are allocated to the athletes by name. If an NOC has more than three athletes of one gender eligible for quota spots, the NOC must decide which three athletes will be qualified. An NOC can enter a maximum of one athlete per event. There can be a maximum of 12 athletes total entered in each event.

All quota spots will be allocated based on the IWF Olympic Qualification Ranking on April 28, 2024. It will count results from the 2022 and 2023 IWF Senior World Championships, 2023 and 2024 Senior Continental Championships/Games, 2023 IWF Grand Prix I & II, and 2024 IWF World Cup. The top 10 athletes in each weight category will qualify. To ensure continental representation, one quota spot per weight category will be allocated to a continent not yet qualified in that event.

Wrestling

Total Athletes: 288 (192 men, 96 women)
Maximum Athletes per NOC: 18 (12 men, 6 women)

United World Wrestling Olympic Qualification System

Quota spots are allocated to the NOC. An NOC can qualify a maximum of one athlete per event.

2023 Senior World ChampionshipsSeptember 16-24, 2023 in Krasnoyarsk, Russia5 quota spots allocated per weight category to the NOCs of the four medallists (gold, silver, bronze, bronze) and the winner of a bout between the two losers of the bronze medal matches
2024 Pan American Qualification TournamentApril 19-21, 2024 in location TBDTop 2 athletes in each weight category earn quota spots for their NOC
2024 World Qualification TournamentMay 9-12, 2024 in location TBD3 quota spots allocated per weight category to the NOCs of the gold and silver medallists and the winner of a bout between the two third-place finishers