Road to Paris: The Elite Squad’s Path
Following on from her success in Troutbeck and a strong performance in La Habana, Elizabeth Carr has moved into the top 200 in the World Triathlon World Rankings, making her Ireland’s top ranked female triathlete at 189th. However, Erin McConnell follows closely ranked 227th having yet to get her season underway.
As both continue to push their boundaries, their sights are set on securing a New Flag position for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
In order to secure a New Flag position, an athlete needs to be the highest ranked from their continent who’s country has not qualified an athlete of the same gender, and ranked within the top 180 athletes in the World Triathlon World Rankings.
In the men’s rankings, James Edgar has climbed within the top 100 in the World Triathlon Rankings to 85th. Edgar is well within contention of the European New Flag spot, although faces stiff competition from Felix Duchampt, now representing Romania, currently ranked at 55th in the World Rankings, and Azerbaijan’s Rostislav Pevtsov who sits in 57th.
Meanwhile Russell White OLY returns to racing action at the end of March with the 2024 World Triathlon Cup Hong Kong. While currently ranked 224th in the World Ranking, White has a current World Triathlon Individual Olympic Qualification Ranking of 138.
How are the World Triathlon World Rankings Calculated?
From Elite National Championships, to the World Triathlon Championship Finals, each World Triathlon sanctioned international race has points on offer for athletes to claim. These points vary for each level of competition, while the distance raced is also a factor, i.e. an Olympic Distance race offers more points than a Sprint Distance race, the World Triathlon Championship Series will also offer more points than a Continental Cup.
Athletes are given a world ranking based on a maximum of 12 events, with their best 6 results from past 12 months added to their best 6 results of the preceding 12 months.
With only four races to her full tally, Carr’s entrance into the top 200 athletes in the World is a considerable feat and makes her one to watch as the season unfolds. McConnell will also be doing everything within her power to battle for a top ranked spot, with the added benefit of being able to draw on her previous 6 best results as she gets her season underway.
How does a Triathlete Qualify for the Olympic Games?
110 athletes in total compete in the Olympic Games Triathlon, with an equal split of 55 slots for men and 55 slots for women. In 2024, France will receive 4 places as the host nation, 2 for men, 2 for women. There are also 4 places, again 2 men and 2 women, set aside for Universality Places, which are decided by the Tripartite Commission.
You can read more about the qualification process here.
