World Triathlon

It is over. After two years, twenty-nine World Cups, over a dozen WTCS events and two incredible WTCS Finals, the Olympic qualifying window has come to a close. The world’s leading triathletes can at long last sit back and breathe as they assess what their efforts have wrought.

For plenty of athletes, Olympic qualification (at least in terms of securing a slot for their country) has long since been assured. At WTCS Cagliari, though, there was joy and heartbreak apiece as some Olympic dreams became real while others succumbed in their final stands on the beaches of Sardinia. In this article, you can discover the closing shifts in the Olympic rankings that were brought about by WTCS Cagliari.

The Men’s Olympic Rankings

It feels like the name Alberto Gonzalez Garcia has been a near-constant presence in the tracking of the Olympic rankings this year and the man from Spain was at it again in Cagliari. He finished 11th in his best ever WTCS performance to rise from 31st to 30th in the rankings. What it lacked in places gained, Gonzalez’s rise more than made up for in terms of significance. Indeed, his jump of one place might have been among the most impactful moves of the qualification period.

With Gonzalez the last man and third Spanish athlete inside the top-30, Spain have earned the right to send three men to Paris this summer. After Gonzalez’s superb run, which has included a bronze medal at the Napier World Cup, a win at the Hong Kong World Cup and now a personal best WTCS finish in Cagliari after already resetting his highest finish at WTCS Yokohama, the only question to be answered is whether he will be selected to take the slot he has worked so hard to earn. As a reminder, all slots are assigned to National Olympic Committees, as opposed to individuals, and final selections are still due to take place.

While Gonzalez’s rise brought delight to the Spanish camp, he broke Hungarian hearts on the final day of the qualifying window. Gábor Faldum (36th) slumped seven places after the outcome of Cagliari while Márk Dévay also slid from 26th to 31st. As a result, Hungary now only has Csongor Lehmann, the bronze medallist in Cagliari, and Bence Bicsák inside the top-30 and therefore have been denied a third man at the Paris Olympics.

It has been a particularly cruel ending to the qualifying window for Hungary. In addition to losing their provisional third male slot, Hungary finished 3rd at the Mixed Relay Olympic Qualification Event in Huatulco and so likewise missed out on sending a relay to Paris by the narrowest of margins. For someone to succeed in this game someone else has to lose and the differing fates of Spain and Hungary show how zero sum Olympic qualification can be.

None of the other contenders for a third male slot in Paris were successful in their pursuit in Cagliari. New Zealand were already out of the equation due to Dylan McCullough’s injury-induced absence and he fell out of the top-30 after being overtaken by Gonzalez. His compatriot Tayler Reid rose by three places to 33rd but also ended the window outside the top-30.

Neither Brandon Copeland nor Seth Rider achieved the rises required for Australia and America, respectively. To be fair, Rider did climb three places in the rankings but he finished the window ranked 44th. At the same time, his compatriot Morgan Pearson fell to 32nd in the Olympic rankings, rendering Rider’s situation moot anyway.

At the lower end of the rankings, there was disappointment for Gregor Payet. Heading into the final weekend, it seemed the athlete from Luxembourg would be the last man into the Games through the Olympic rankings in the event of a roll down. However, the updated qualifying simulation revealed that Mitch Kolkman would leapfrog everyone in the Olympic rankings from 126th after he qualified as part of the successful Dutch relay team in Huatulco. As a result, Gaspar Riveros (83rd) became the last man due to the roll down from the unused Oceania New Flag.

Payet (84th) was a late addition to the Cagliari start list however he could not summon a final push to rise in the rankings. He therefore ended the Olympic qualifying window with 1598.80 points, exactly 0.71 points behind Riveros and so will be the first in line for any unlikely roll down place.

The Men’s Slots By Country

3 slots
• ESP, FRA, GER
2 slots
• AUS, AUT, BEL, BRA, CAN, CHI, GBR, HUN, ITA, JPN, MEX, NED, NOR, NZL, POR, RSA, SUI, USA
1 slot
• AZE, BAR, DEN, HKG, ISR, MAR, ROU

Note, the above slots are provisional and are pending the final allocation of one New Flag and both universality places as well as the final acceptance from each relevant country. National Olympic Committees are also responsible for assigning the slots to their athletes.

The Women’s Olympic Rankings

Ilaria Zane ended the weekend where she started, occupying 26th place in the Olympic rankings, and has therefore confirmed Italy’s third female slot at the Games. While Zane did not finish in Cagliari, a run of four top-6 finishes at World Cup events in 2024 proved more than enough to secure her position.

The only other country in contention for a third female slot was Spain. However, in contrast to their men’s team they fell short in Cagliari. Noelia Juan did not move from her ranking of 36th while Anna Godoy Contreras rose by six places into 43rd. Neither, then, were able to join Miriam Casillas Garcia in the top-30. In the immediate term, Juan and Godoy will be crossing their fingers as they hope for selection in the second and final Spanish Olympic berth.

Meanwhile, one of the biggest battles in Cagliari was the race for the final women’s slot in the Olympic rankings. Petra Kurikova led going into the weekend from 58th place. However, was pursued by Erica Hawley (60th), Dominika Jamnicky (62nd), Zuzana Michalickova (63rd) and Tereza Zimovjanova (65th).

While Michlickova achieved a personal best WTCS finish of 33rd in Cagliari, it was ultimately not enough. Hawely, Jamnicky and Zimovjanova also finished outside of the top-40 in Sardinia and so Kurikova was able to hold on to her final qualifying slot. One thing to note, however, is that Hawley stands as the next athlete in the Olympic rankings. Should one of the women’s universality slots not be allocated, the berth would roll down to the Olympic rankings which would save Hawley.

For those that have not qualified, though, it should not be overlooked how valiantly they fought for two years and how close they came to qualifying for Paris. In both the men’s and women’s events, there are World Cup medallists, continental champions and even WTCS medallists that will not start in Paris. Moreover, several of those that have missed the cut have also logged some of the best performances of their careers so far and can take pride in what they have achieved. While their Olympic dream may be over for now, they embodied the notion of “Be Your Extraordinary”.

The Women’s Slots By Country

3 slots
• FRA, GBR, GER, ITA, USA
2 slots
• AUS,AUT, BEL, BRA, ESP, MEX, NED, NOR, NZL, POR, SUI
1 slot
• ARG, BER, CAN, CHN, COL, CZE, DEN, ECU, GUM, HUN, JPN, KAZ, LUX, POL, RSA, SWE

Note, as with men’s slots, the women’s slots are provisional and are pending the allocation of the New Flag and universality places as well as the final acceptance from each relevant country.

The Relay Slots

The following countries will be entitled to start a relay having either earned a relay berth or qualified at least two men and two women:
• AUS, AUT, BEL, BRA, ESP, FRA, GBR, GER, ITA, MEX, NED, NOR, NZL, POR, SUI, USA