Judo: Olympic Rankings Published 113 Nations Qualify

113 nations qualified through the Judo Olympic Rankings. Athletes earned points through various world and continental events over a two year period. There were two methods of qualifying. First the top 22 men and top 14 women qualify with a maximum of one NOC per weight class. Second are the continental qualifiers. The highest ranked, not yet qualified athletes across all events can qualify. Each continent has a set amount of quotas; Africa 24 (14 men, 10 women), Europe 25 (14 men, 11 women), Asia 20 (12 men, 8 women), Oceania 10 (7 men, 3 women), and Pan America 21 (13 men, 8 women). A nation can only earn one spot across all events through this and a single continent can qualify a maximum of two athletes in a single event. The qualification period lasted from May 30th 2014 to May 29th 2016.

In total 113 nations have qualified with France and Japan joining hosts Brazil as being the only nation to have qualified a full team of men and women. Also qualifying a full men’s team are Georgia, Germany, Mongolia, Russia, South Korea and Uzbekistan. Overall 53 nations only qualified through the continental rankings while 14 nations did not receive a continental quota. Oceania did not allocate all 10 of its continental quotas thus the unused quota was reallocated to the athlete with the most points and is not yet qualified among all events, specifically Uzbekistan’s Soyib Kurbonov in the men’s -100kg.

The quotas are tied to the athletes by name with the exception of where multiple athletes from the same nation finished in the top 22 for men and top 14 for women where the nation can choose from among them. All that is left to determine in judo is the tripartite quotas.

 

Quotas by Nations

• France – 14
• Japan – 14
• Germany – 13
• Mongolia – 13
• South Korea – 12
• Netherlands – 11
• Russia – 11
• Cuba – 9
• Canada – 8
• China – 8
• Georgia – 8
• Hungary – 8
• Uzbekistan – 8
• Australia – 7
• Great Britain – 7
• Israel – 7
• Ukraine – 7
• Azerbaijan – 6
• Portugal – 6
• United States – 6
• Algeria – 5
• Austria – 5
• Belgium – 5
• Egypt – 5
• Italy – 5
• Kazakhstan – 5
• Slovenia – 5
• Spain – 5
• Poland – 4
• Romania – 4
• Sweden – 4
• Tunisia – 4
• Turkey – 4
• Czech Republic – 3
• Ecuador – 3
• Iran – 3
• Morocco – 3
• North Korea – 3
• Switzerland – 3
• United Arab Emirates – 3
• Argentina – 2
• Belarus – 2
• Bulgaria – 2
• Chinese Taipei – 2
• Colombia – 2
• Gabon – 2
• Greece – 2
• Kosovo – 2
• Kyrgyzstan – 2
• Latvia – 2
• Mexico – 2
• Puerto Rico – 2
• South Africa – 2
• Tajikistan – 2
• Turkmenistan – 2
• American Samoa – 1
• Angola – 1
• Armenia – 1
• Aruba – 1
• Benin – 1
• Bolivia – 1
• Bosnia and Herzegovina – 1
• Burkina Faso – 1
• Cameroon – 1
• Chile – 1
• Congo – 1
• Costa Rica – 1
• Côte d’Ivoire – 1
• Croatia – 1
• Dominican Republic – 1
• El Salvador – 1
• Estonia – 1
• Fiji – 1
• Finland – 1
• Gambia – 1
• Ghana – 1
• Guatemala – 1
• Guinea-Bissau – 1
• Haiti – 1
• Honduras – 1
• Iceland – 1
• India – 1
• Iraq – 1
• Jordan – 1
• Kenya – 1
• Lebanon – 1
• Libya – 1
• Lithuania – 1
• Madagascar – 1
• Mali – 1
• Mauritius – 1
• Moldova – 1
• Mozambique – 1
• Nauru – 1
• New Zealand – 1
• Niger – 1
• Pakistan – 1
• Palau – 1
• Papua New Guinea – 1
• Peru – 1
• Qatar – 1
• Samoa – 1
• Saudi Arabia – 1
• Senegal – 1
• Serbia – 1
• Seychelles – 1
• Thailand – 1
• Trinidad and Tobago – 1
• Uruguay – 1
• Vanuatu – 1
• Venezuela – 1
• Vietnam – 1
• Zambia – 1

 

References

• IJF. Judo Base Olympic Quotas by Nations. Access on June 4 2016.
• IJF. Judo Base Men’s Olympic Rankings. Access on June 4 2016.
• IJF. Judo Base Women’s Olympic Rankings. Access on June 4 2016.

Gymnastics: Test Event Decide Remaining Quotas

France and Germany qualified a full artistic team, Germany and Uzbekistan qualified both an individual and team in rhythmic gymnastics and Portugal and the United States qualified an athlete in both genders in trampoline at the 2016 Gymnastics Olympic Test Event. The Olympic test event featured all three disciplines in gymnastics. In artistic gymnastics the top four all-around teams will qualify along with eligible all-around individuals until the total quota of 97 men and 97 women have been met including continental representation. In trampoline eight quotas for each gender are available to the top eligible athletes, including continental representation. Two of these quotas are meant for the host Brazil and the tripartite though gender is not specified. In rhythmic gymnastics the top three all-around teams and the top nine all-around individuals, including continental representation will qualify. The Gymnastics Olympic Test Event was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from April 16th to April 22nd 2016.

 

Artistic

In the men’s team all-around competition it was Germany whom led all nations with a score of 350.609. After a relatively weak floor performance the team posted top three results in all of the other apparatuses including a top performance in the parallel bars. Ukraine followed close behind with a final score of 350.160. The team had a good performance at the beginning including a very strong first place in the pommel horse, but ultimately lost pace to Germany. The other two nations which booked a team spot were the Netherlands who will compete in the men’s team event for the first time in its history and France. Inconsistencies including a horrible start on the pommel horse ultimately cost Spain a spot in the team event.

Nations which competed in the team event, but did not qualify are eligible to pick any athlete to compete at the Olympics. These nations are Romania, Spain, Belgium and Canada. Continental representation (1 for Oceania, 2 for other continents) was not met for Africa as only one athlete qualified through the test event. This meant the highest ranked African athlete from the 2015 World Championship, Algeria’s Mohamed Bourguieg qualified to the Olympics. Nations which had two athletes competing and both athletes finishing higher than the lowest ranked qualifier will have the opportunity to pick which one of the two athletes will compete. These nations are Colombia, Mexico and Hungary.

The following athletes are qualified to the Olympics based on the order from the individual all-around event; Andrey Likhovitskiy (Belarus), Alexander Shatilov (Isarael), Ferhat Arican (Turkey), Artur Davtyan (Armenia), Randy Leru (Cuba), Filip Ude (Croatia), Petro Pakhnyuk (Azerbaijan), Anton Fokin (Uzbekistan), Oskar Kirmes (Finland), Ludovico Edalli (Italy), Stian Skjerahaug (Norway), David Jessen (Czech Republic), Robert Tvorogal (Lithuania), Pham Phuoc Hung (Vietnam), Marios Georgiou (Cyprus), Kieran Behan (Ireland), Vlasios Maras (Greece), Gustavo Palma Simoes (Portugal), Mikhail Koudinoc (New Zealand), Ryan Patterson (South Africa), Tomas Gonzalez (Chile) and Lee Chih Kai (Chinese Taipei).

The women’s team all-around event was topped by Brazil whom finished with a score of 226.477. The team had a great performance, finishing first in the balance beam, floor and vault. Despite a poor performance on the uneven bars second place Germany was unable to close the gap completely, finishing with an overall score of 223.977. Also qualifying to the Olympics are Belgium and France. In one of the most shocking news in gymnastics Romania, medalists at every Olympics since 1976 will not be sending a team as a poor uneven bars contributed to their seventh place finish.

Nations which competed in the team event, but did not qualify are eligible to choose any athlete to compete at the Olympics. These nations are Australia, Switzerland, Romania and South Korea. Continental representation (1 for Oceania, 2 for the other continents) was not met for Africa as no athletes were qualified at the end of the test event. This meant the highest ranked African athletes from the 2015 World Championships, specifically; Algeria’s Farah Boufadene and South Africa’s Claudia Cummins have qualified to the Olympics. Nations which had two athletes competing and both athletes finishing higher than the lowest ranked qualifier will have the opportunity to pick which one of two athletes will compete. These nations are Greece, Hungary, Spain, Mexico and Poland.

The following athletes are qualified to the Olympics based on the order from the individual all-around event; Ana Sofia Gomez (Guatemala), Jessica Lopez Arocha (Venezuela), Angelina Kysla (Ukraine), Marcia Vidiaux (Cuba), Filipa Martins (Portugal), Lisa Ecker (Austria), Toni-Ann Williams (Jamaica), Irina Sazonova (Iceland), Phan Thu Ha Thanh (Vietnam), Dipa Karmakar (India), Barbora Mokosova (Slovakia), Courtney McGregor (New Zealand), Oksana Chusovitina (Uzbekistan), Houry Gebeshian (Armenia), Ariana Orrego (Peru), Simona Castro (Chile), Teja Belak (Slovenia), Tutya Yilmaz (Turkey), Emma Larsson (Sweden), Marisa Dick (Trinidad and Tobago), Ana Derek (Croatia), Catalina Escobar Gomez (Colombia), Kylie Dickson (Belarus), Ellis O’Reilly (Ireland) and Ailen Valente (Argentina).

 

Trampoline

The qualification round of the women’s trampoline was topped by Li Dan of China whom scored 102.480 after her two performances. In the final however, Li had a subpar performance and finished in fifth. The event was instead won by her compatriot Liu Lingling whom finished with a score of 55.485. China along with Belarus has already previously qualified to the Olympics while other nations were allowed to only qualify one athlete. The Olympic quotas went to Russia, Ukraine, Japan, Uzbekistan, Germany, Portugal and the United States. While the last spot is expected to go to a tripartite nation it will likely eventually be reallocated to the next best ranked nation, France.

Before the competition began Brazil declared that it will use its host quota on the men’s trampoline, leaving the men one fewer qualification spot. The qualification round of the men’s trampoline was topped by China’s Gao Lei whom scored 110.660 after his two performances. A mistake and a fall in the final cost Gao the event as he finished in eighth. The winner of the event was Belarus’ Uladzislau Hancharou whom finished with a score of 59.750. China along with Belarus has already previously qualified to the Olympics while other nations were allowed to only qualify one athlete. The Olympic quotas went to New Zealand, Portugal, United States, Great Britain, Australia, Canada and as mentioned before Brazil obtained a quota for being the host nation. While the last spot is currently reserved for a tripartite nation it could potentially be reallocation to the next best ranked nation, Kazakhstan.

 

Rhythmic

The qualification round of the individual all-around was led by Belarus’ Melitina Staniouta whom finished with the top score in all four rotations for a total of 72.215 points. However, Belarus has already qualified to the Olympics. The following athletes qualified to the Olympics; Sabina Ashirbayeva (Kazakhstan), Nicol Ruprecht (Austria), Veronica Berolini (Italy), Ekaterina Volkova (Finland), Anastasiya Serdyukova (Uzbekistan), Ana Luiza Filiorianu (Romania), Shang Rong (China) and Jana Berezko-Marggrander. Also since Oceania did not qualify an athlete Australia’s Danielle Prince has been given a continental quota. An African quota will be given either through the tripartite commission or through the best ranked athlete from the 2015 World Championships (South Africa). In addition Brazil announced that it will use its host quota on Natalia Gaudio. The final was again topped by Staniouta whom finished with a score of 70.749.

A direct final for the team all-around was held. Germany won the event by being the best team in the two rotations finishing with a score of 33.183. The other two Olympic quotas went to silver medalist Uzbekistan (32.832) and bronze medalist Greece (31.982).

This was the final opportunity for nations to qualify to the Olympics in gymnastics. All that is remaining is to decide on the tripartite places. Overall China and Russia will be sending the largest teams with 20 athletes each while Japan and the United States will also compete in all of the events.

 

Athletes by Nations

• Germany – 16
• France – 10
• Uzbekistan – 9
• Greece – 7
• Ukraine – 7
• Belgium – 6
• Brazil – 5
• Netherlands – 5
• Portugal – 4
• Australia – 3
• New Zealand – 3
• Romania – 3
• Algeria – 2
• Armenia – 2
• Austria – 2
• Belarus – 2
• Canada – 2
• Chile – 2
• Colombia – 2
• Croatia – 2
• Cuba – 2
• Finland – 2
• Hungary – 2
• Ireland – 2
• Italy – 2
• Mexico – 2
• South Africa – 2
• Spain – 2
• Turkey – 2
• United States – 2
• Vietnam – 2
• Argentina – 1
• Azerbaijan – 1
• China – 1
• Chinese Taipei – 1
• Cyprus – 1
• Czech Republic – 1
• Great Britain – 1
• Guatemala – 1
• Iceland – 1
• India – 1
• Israel – 1
• Jamaica – 1
• Japan – 1
• Kazakhstan – 1
• Lithuania – 1
• Norway – 1
• Peru – 1
• Poland – 1
• Russia – 1
• Slovakia – 1
• Slovenia – 1
• South Korea – 1
• Sweden – 1
• Switzerland – 1
• Trinidad and Tobago – 1
• Venezuela – 1

 

References

• FIG. Final Gymnastics Qualifier (Test Event) – Schedule and Results. Access on April 22 2016.

Rowing: Update on Latin America Regatta Qualifiers

FISA has given us an update about the qualified boats from the Latin America Regatta. Since a nation can only qualify one boat per gender some nations had to choose which event they will compete in meaning the other boat was reallocated to the next highest ranked nation. Also there was a slight change to the qualification format where the host quota reallocation now goes to the next highest ranked nation from the Latin America Regatta. Since Brazil has already qualified there will be seven quotas available in the single sculls for both genders. Here’s a list of qualified boats.

 

Men’s Single Sculls

1. Mexico
2. Argentina
3. Peru
4. Uruguay
5. Venezuela
6. Ecuador
7. Paraguay

 

Men’s Lightweight Double Sculls

1. Brazil
2. Cuba
3. Chile

 

Women’s Single Sculls

1. Bermuda
2. Mexico
3. Trinidad and Tobago
4. Argentina
5. Paraguay
6. Peru
7. Bahamas

 

Women’s Lightweight Double Sculls

1. Brazil
2. Cuba
3. Chile

 

References

• FISA. 2016 Rowing Olympic and Paralympic Qualification By Event. Access on April 20 2016.

Rowing: Nine Nations Qualify Boats After Latin American Regatta, Reallocations Still to Follow

Brazil managed to medal in all four events at the 2016 Latin American Olympic Qualification Regatta. The top six nations in the single sculls and the top three nations in the lightweight double sculls were given quotas to compete in the Olympics. However, there is a maximum of one boat per gender. The Latin American Olympic Qualification Regatta was held in Curauma, Chile from March 22nd to March 24th 2016.

The top two in the three heats of the men’s single sculls advanced to the A/B semi-final while all other boats advanced to the repechage. Mexico’s Julian Cabrera Perez had the fastest time in the heats, winning heat 1 with a time of 7:07.014. In the two repechages the top three advanced to the A/B semi-final. Uruguay’s Jhonatan Esquivel Montes finished with the fastest time of 7:07.453 in repechage 1. Cabrera Perez repeated his strong performance in the A/B semi-final, winning heat 1 with a time of 7:06.912. Brazil’s Steve Hiestand won the second semi-final with a time of 7:04.296. Argentina, Chile, Peru and Uruguay also qualified to the A Final and thus all six nations qualified to the Olympics. Cabrera Perez would go on to win the event with a time of 6:58.991. Argentina’s Brian Russo won silver while Hiestand won bronze.

The top two in the four heats of the women’s single sculls advanced to the A/B semi-final while all other boats advanced to the repechage. Mexico’s Kenia Lechuga Alenis had the fastest time in the heats, winning heat 4 with a time of 7:35.886. In the two repechages the top two advanced to the A/B semi-final. Chile’s Antonia Abraham Schuessler finished with the fastest time of 7:47.514 in repechage 1. Bermuda’s Michelle Pearson won the first race in the A/B semi-final with a time of 7:46.073. The second heat went to Lechuga Alenis whom finished with a time of 7:46.094. Brazil, Chile, Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago also qualified to the A Final and thus all six nations qualified to the Olympics. Pearson won the event with a time of 7:42.008 while Brazil’s Fabiana Beltramebiana won silver and Lechuga Alenia won bronze.

The winners of the two heats of the men’s lightweight double sculls advanced to the A Final while all other boats advanced to the repechage. The first heat was won by Mexico with a time of 6:20.942 while the second heat was won by Cuba with a time of 6:28.352. The top two from the two repechages advanced to the A Final. Chile and Brazil both won their respective heats while Argentina and Uruguay also advanced to the A Final. Brazil won the event with a time of 6:25.965 while Mexico and Cuba won the silver and bronze respectively as all three nations qualified to the Olympics.

The top two boats over the two heats of the women’s lightweight double sculls advanced to the A Final while all other boats advanced to the repechage. The first heat was won by El Salvador with a time of 7:12.461, Chile finished in second. The second heat was won by Cuba with a time of 7:15.346, Brazil finished second. The top two from the single repechage advanced to the A Final. The repechage was won by Argentina with a time of 7:10.956, Mexico finished second and also advanced to the A Final. Brazil won the event with a time of 7:08.950 while Cuba and Chile won the silver and bronze respectively as all three nations qualified to the Olympics.

Since Brazil and Mexico for the men and Brazil, Chile and Cuba for the women qualified in both boats they must now choose which event they will compete in while the other boat will be reallocated to the next highest ranked boat at this regatta. The reallocations will force another nation to choose between two boats, but in the end the following nations could potentially benefit from the reallocation; in the men’s singles sculls; Venezuela and Ecuador, in the men’s lightweight single sculls; Venezuela and Paraguay, in the women’s single sculls; Argentina, Paraguay and Peru and in the women’s lightweight double sculls; El Salvador, Argentina and Uruguay. Nations will have two weeks to submit which quota they will use so it will probably be a while before we will know the final qualification.

 

Boats by Nations

• Brazil – 4*
• Chile – 3*
• Cuba – 3*
• Mexico – 3*
• Argentina – 1
• Bermuda – 1
• Peru – 1
• Trinidad and Tobago – 1
• Uruguay – 1

* Will be reduced

 

References

• IMAS. FISA Americas Olympic Continental Qualification Regatta Results. Access on March 24 2016.

Boxing: 13 American Nations Qualify After Continental Qualifier

13 nations qualified athletes at the 2016 American Boxing Olympic Qualification Tournament. In the men’s events the top two in the light flyweight, flyweight, bantamweight, light welterweight and light heavyweight and the top three in the lightweight, welterweight, middleweight, heavyweight and super heavyweight qualified to the Olympics. For the women’s events the top lightweight and top two flyweight and middleweight qualified to the Olympics. The differences in quotas are due to the subtraction caused by Brazil using a host quota. The American Boxing Olympic Qualification Tournament was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina from March 11th to March 19th 2016.

Overall 33 nations compete in 10 men’s and 3 women’s weight classes. The first day of finals saw the results of six men’s events. 2015 world silver medalist Erislandy Savon of Cuba won the men’s heavyweight (-91kg) over Argentina’s Yamil Peralta. Brazil won the third quota by winning a box-off. Argentina also qualified by winning the men’s flyweight (-52kg) over Dominican Republic’s Leonel De Los Santos. Both Colombia and the United States qualified in the men’s light flyweight and (-49kg) and middleweight (-75kg) as the two nations split the events respectively. Mexico also qualified in the middleweight class. Canada’s 2015 Pan American gold medalist Arthur Biyarslanov won in the men’s light welterweight as he defeated Venezuela’s Luis Arcon. Venezuela also qualified in a second event by finishing runner-up to Ecuador’s Carlos Mina in the men’s light heavyweight (-81kg).

In the women’s events 2015 Pan American gold medalist Mandy Bujold defeated Colombia’s Ingrit Valencia in the women’s flyweight (-51kg) as both qualified to the Olympics. United States’ Mikaela Myers grabbed the only quota in the women’s lightweight (-60kg) as she defeated Mexico’s Victoria Torres in the final. 2012 Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields will get to defend her crown as she won the middleweight (-75kg) by defeating Canada’s Ariane Fortin, whom also qualified to the Olympics.

The second day of finals saw Cuba becoming the first nation to qualify in all ten of the men’s events as they won gold in the welterweight (-69kg) and in the super heavyweight (+91kg). Venezuela won the lightweight (-60kg) event by defeating Honduras in the final and also qualified in the welterweight. The other event, the bantamweight (-56kg) was won by the United States’ Shakur Stevenson whom defeated Argentina’s Alberto Melian. Argentina also did well on this day as they also qualified in the lightweight and welterweight. The other qualified nations were Trinidad and Tobago and US Virgin Islands, both qualified in the super heavyweight.

As a reminder the women’s world championship will have higher priority so if one of the above athletes qualified through that then the next highest ranked nation here would qualify. For the men, unqualified nations will still have a chance to qualify in two more events.

 

Quotas by Nations

• Argentina – 5
• United States – 5
• Venezuela – 4
• Cuba – 3
• Canada – 3
• Colombia – 3
• Brazil – 1
• Dominican Republic – 1
• Ecuador – 1
• Honduras – 1
• Mexico – 1
• Trinidad and Tobago – 1
• US Virgin Islands – 1

 

References

• AIBA. 2016 American Olympic Qualification Tournament Results. Access on March 20 2016.

Cycling Track: Olympic Track Rankings Published

With the final update of the Olympic Track World Rankings the quotas for track cycling has been decided. The top 9 nations in team sprint, the top 9 individuals not qualified in the team sprint in the individual sprint and keirin with a maximum of two per nation, the top 9 nations in the team pursuit and the top 18 nations in the omnium will qualify to the Olympics. The Olympic Track World Rankings were constructed based on various eligible events ranging from July 15th 2014 to March 6th 2016.

Each continent also has a maximum quota limit for each event. Should the limit be reached the next highest ranked nation from a different continent will qualify. The maximum limit quotas for each event are as follows.

Russia topped the rankings for the women’s team sprint. They will be joined by Australia, China, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, France, New Zealand and Canada. Great Britain finished within the top nine, but did not qualify due to Europe already reaching its maximum quota of five.

The rankings for the men’s team sprint were topped by Germany. They will be joined by the Netherlands, France, New Zealand, Australia, Great Britain, Poland, Venezuela and South Korea at the Olympics. While Russia finished in the top nine Europe had already exceeded its maximum quota of five.

The women’s individual sprint Olympic rankings were topped by Hong Kong’s Lee Wai Sze. Hong Kong will be joined by the following nations, Lithuania, Cuba, Great Britain (2), Azerbaijan, Malaysia, Colombia and Egypt. Many athletes from America and Asia finished ahead of the final athlete from Egypt, but those continents reached the maximum quota. Also all nations which qualified in the team sprint can send a maximum of two athletes to this event.

The men’s individual sprint Olympic rankings were topped by Australia’s Matthew Glaetzer. However since Australia already qualified to the Olympics the nine individual spots went to Russia (2), Colombia, China, Czech Republic (2), Trinidad and Tobago, Japan and Spain. Many athletes from America and Asia finished ahead of the final athlete from the Czech Republic, but those continents reached the maximum quota. Also all nations which qualified in the team sprint can send a maximum of two athletes to this event.

The rankings for the women’s kerin were topped by Guo Shuang of China. China is already qualified through the team sprint so the nine spots went to Hong Kong, South Korea, Lithuania, Cuba, Ukraine, Colombia, Ireland, Great Britain and Azerbaijan. Many athletes from America and Asia finished ahead of the final athlete from Azerbaijan, but those continents reached the maximum quota. Also all nations which qualified in the team sprint can send a maximum of two athletes to this event.

The men’s keirin was topped by Colombia’s Fabian Puerta Zapata. He will be joined by Malaysia, Russia, Japan, United States, Canada, Greece, Czech Republic and Italy. South Korea and China finished ahead of the final athlete, but did not qualify as Asia had already reached its maximum quota. Also all nations which qualified in the team sprint can send a maximum of two athletes to this event.

The women’s team pursuit was topped by Great Britain. They will be joined by Canada, Australia, China, United States, New Zealand, Italy, Germany and Poland whose result at the 2016 Track World Championship was enough to finish ahead of Russia.

The men’s team pursuit was topped by Australia. They will be joined by Great Britain, New Zealand, Germany, Denmark, Russia, Switzerland, Netherlands and China.

The women’s nation omnium rankings were topped by Great Britain. They will be joined by the Netherlands, United States, Belgium, Australia, France, Cuba, Belarus, Denmark, Poland, Germany, Canada, New Zealand, China, Russia, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, Venezuela and Japan. Several European nations had a good enough ranking, but did not qualify due to the maximum quota of eight European nations being met.

The men’s nation omnium rankings were topped by Australia. They will be joined by Colombia, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Great Britain, France, New Zealand, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, United States, Japan, Hong Kong, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Mexico and South Korea. Russia and Netherlands finished within the top 18, but did not qualify as Europe had already reached its maximum quota of eight.

This was the only opportunity for nations to qualify in track cycling. Overall 36 nations will send at least one athlete in the sport. Also while Great Britain technically qualified 16 athletes the maximum quota in track cycling is 15.

 

Athletes by Nations

• Australia – 15
• Germany – 15
• Great Britain – 15
• New Zealand – 15
• China – 12
• Netherlands – 11
• Russia – 9
• Canada – 8
• Poland – 8
• France – 7
• United States – 7
• Denmark – 6
• Italy – 6
• Colombia – 5
• South Korea – 5
• Switzerland – 5
• Hong Kong – 4
• Japan – 4
• Venezuela – 4
• Cuba – 3
• Czech Republic – 3
• Spain – 3
• Azerbaijan – 2
• Belgium – 2
• Lithuania – 2
• Malaysia – 2
• Belarus – 1
• Brazil – 1
• Egypt – 1
• Greece – 1
• Ireland – 1
• Kazakhstan – 1
• Mexico – 1
• Chinese Taipei – 1
• Trinidad and Tobago – 1
• Ukraine – 1

 

References

• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Men’s Team Sprint. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Men’s Individual Sprint. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Men’s Keirin. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Men’s Team Pursuit. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Men’s Omnium. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Women’s Team Sprint. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Women’s Individual Sprint. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Women’s Keirin. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Women’s Team Pursuit. Access on March 7 2016.
• UCI. UCI Olympic Track Rankings – Women’s Omnium. Access on March 7 2016.

Sailing: Guatemala and United States Win Gold at Pan American Games

Guatemala and the United States won the laser and laser radial events respectively at the Pan American Games. The continental qualifiers were split for these two events where the highest ranked nation not yet qualified from the North and South American regions will qualify to the Olympics. The fight for the second spots will occur in a later regatta. The Pan America Games are currently being held in Toronto, Canada from July 7th to July 26th 2015. The sailing events were held from July 12th to July 19th 2015.

United States’ Paige Railey may have only won one race, but she was by far the most consistent sailor in the women’s laser radial. In fact her worst race was only a 8th place finish in a field of 16. With that she was able to take a 10 point lead going into the medal race where she easily hanged on to win gold.

The fight for the North American position ultimately came down to Aruba’s Philipine van Aanholt and Trinidad and Tobago’s Kelly-Ann Arrindell where a five point gap separated the two going into the medal race. Arrindell did the best she could be winning the race, but Aanholt’s third place finish meant it was enough for Aruba to qualify.

The South American quota was between Argentina’s Lucia Falasca, Uruguay’s Dolores Moreira and Venezuela’s Daniela Rivera. Falasca had a 4 and 10 point lead over Uruguay and Venezuela respectively, but a disastrous medal race where she placed eighth, not only cost her a medal, but an Olympic quota. Instead it was Uruguay’s second place performance which was enough not only for a silver medal, but an Olympic quota. Brazil’s Fernanda Demetrio won the bronze.

Like in the women’s race Guatemala’s Juan Ignacio Maegli may have only won a single race, but it was his consistency in the men’s laser that won him the event as he posted a top 5 finish in every race except one which was dropped anyways. The silver medal went to Brazil’s Robert Scheidt while the bronze went to Canada’s Lee Parkhill.

The quota for North America nations wasn’t much of a race as Trinidad and Tobago’s Andrew Lewis consistently finished ahead of his eligible opponents and was the only sailor to reach the medal rounds.

As with North America in South America it was El Salvador’s Enrique Arathoon that did just enough against his Venezuelan opponent to stay ahead of him in most races. While in some sports which separate North and South America include El Salvador as a North American nation in sailing they are considered a South American nation.

The other single spot in men’s laser and women’s laser radial will be decided at a world cup in early 2016. The laser radial also has its world championships to go so it will be likely that some nations in Pan America will qualify through that.

Quotas by Nation

• Aruba – 1
• El Salvador – 1
• Trinidad and Tobago – 1
• Uruguay – 1

References

• ISAF. Pan American Games serves up four Rio 2016 qualifiers. Access on July 20 2015.

Athletics: United States and Jamaica Lead the Way at the World Relay Championships

Brazil, Jamaica and the United States were able to qualify in all four relay events showing that Pan American countries are still by far the strongest continent in sprint events as they were able to win over half the available quotas.

The World Relay Championships was created in 2014 to provide more international competition for relay events along with developing the non-Olympic relays. The 2015 edition was held in Nassau, Bahamas from May 2nd 2015 to May 3rd 2015. The top 8 relay teams in each event in the finals qualified to the Olympics.

As expected the highlight of the men’s 4x100m relay was between Jamaica and the United States. Both teams brought several of their top runners with Nesta Carter, Kemar Bailey-Cole, Nickel Ashmeade and Usain Bolt representing Jamaica and Mike Rodgers, Justin Gatlin, Tyson Gay and Ryan Bailey representing the United States. In the end it was the United States that edged Jamaica for gold setting a new Championship Record with a time of 37.38. In a bit of an upset that was overshadowed by the US/Jamaica affair Japan took the bronze medal. The other nations that placed in the top 8 were Brazil, France, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago and Germany.

In the women’s 4x400m relay the United States set another Championship Record as the team of Phyllis Francis, Natasha Hastings, Sanya Richards-Ross and Francena McCorory finished over Jamaica with a time of 3:19.39. The bronze medal was a close affair as both France and Great Britain remained close at the end, but it was Great Britain whom won the final sprint, 0.30 seconds ahead with a time of 3:26.38. The other nations that placed in the top 8 were Poland, Canada, Australia and Brazil.

Jamaica was finally able to defeat the United States in the women’s 4x100m relay as the team of Simone Facey, Kerron Stewart, Schillonie Calvert and Veronica Campbell-Brown were able to outmatch their United States counter-part with a time of 42.14. The race for third place was quite exciting to watch as five teams raced for the line. In the end it was Great Britain again who finished third with a minuscule 0.01 second lead over Canada. In fact third to seventh place all finished 0.15 seconds apart. The other nations that placed in the top 8 were Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil, Nigeria and Switzerland.

After a disappointing event for the host nation where the other three relays failed to qualify to the Olympics the crowd was given something to cheer about as 3/4 of their 2012 Olympic gold medal team stepped up to do battle in the men’s 4x400m final. The team of Ramon Miller, Michael Mathieu, Steven Gardiner and Chris Brown had a very impressive race, but they too were disappointed as the United States was able to take a third gold medal among the Olympic events with a time of 2:58.43. Belgium along with three members of the Borlee family finished with the bronze medal. The other nations that placed in the top 8 were Jamaica, Brazil, Great Britain, Trinidad and Tobago and Botswana.

Overall most of the usual suspects qualified with the biggest surprise being Botswana in the men’s 4x400m. Host nation Brazil will be pleased that they have qualified in all four events. Unsurprisingly the United States and Jamaica are still the teams to beat. For the remaining 8 spots in each event all other nations will have their 2 best times from May 1st 2015 to July 12th 2016 added together and the 8 fastest times will then qualify a team.

Quotas by Nation

• Brazil – 4
• Jamaica – 4
• United States – 4
• Great Britain – 3
• Trinidad and Tobago – 3
• Canada – 2
• France – 2
• Australia – 1
• Bahamas – 1
• Belgium – 1
• Botswana – 1
• Germany – 1
• Japan – 1
• Nigeria – 1
• Poland – 1
• Saint Kitts and Nevis – 1
• Switzerland – 1

References

• IAAF. 2015 World Relay Championships Results. Access on May 3 2015.