Following the 10km open water swimming competitions for women and men at the World Aquatics Championships – Doha 2024, the Olympic qualification pathway for the Marathon Swimming events at the Paris 2024 Olympics has been finalised.
A total of 44 athletes – 22 women and 22 men – either automatically qualified or earned their National Olympic Committee (NOC) quota places for the Marathon Swimming events at the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympics, which will take place in the French capital on 8 and 9 August 2024.
Paris 2024 Marathon Swimming qualifiers from the World Aquatics Championships – Fukuoka 2023
The top three finishers in both genders of the open water swimming 10km events at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships, held last July in Fukuoka, Japan, earned a personal invitation and automatically qualified these athletes and their countries for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
In Fukuoka, the following athletes qualified for the Marathon Swimming event at the Paris 2024 Olympics:
For the women: Leonie Beck (GER), gold; Chelsea Gubecka (AUS), silver; Katie Grimes (USA), bronze.
For the men: Florian Wellbrock (GER), gold; Kristof Rasovszky (HUN), silver; Oliver Klemet (GER), bronze.
Paris 2024 Marathon Swimming qualifiers from the World Aquatics Championships – Doha 2024
The final 19 positions for women and men in the Marathon Swimming competitions at the Paris 2024 Olympics were earned at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships, which are currently underway in Doha, Qatar (2-18 February 2024). The 10km open water event for women took place on 3 February, followed by the 10km competition for men on 4 February.
The 13 highest-placed athletes in 10km competitions for women and men in Doha earned a quota place for their NOC to the Paris 2024 Olympics (D.1.2), provided they had not already qualified in Fukuoka.
In Doha, the following countries earned NOC quota position for women in Marathon Swimming (listed in the order of the country’s highest-positioned athlete from the open water swimming 10km event for women in Doha):
- Netherlands (1 NOC quota position)
- Spain (2 NOC quota positions)
- Portugal (1 NOC quota position)
- Australia (1 NOC quota position)
- Brazil (1 NOC quota position)
- United States (1 NOC quota position)
- France (2 NOC quota positions)
- Italy (1 NOC quota position)
- Monaco (1 NOC quota position)
- Japan (1 NOC quota position)
- Hungary (1 NOC quota position)
In Doha, the following countries earned NOC quota position for men in Marathon Swimming (listed in the order of the country’s highest-positioned athlete from the open water swimming 10km event for men in Doha):
- France (2 NOC quota positions)
- Great Britain (2 NOC quota positions)
- Australia (2 NOC quota positions)
- Hungary (1 NOC quota position)
- Italy (2 NOC quota positions)
- Israel (1 NOC quota position)
- Ecuador (1 NOC quota position)
- Greece (1 NOC quota position)
- United States (1 NOC quota position)
France host country quota position
As the host country, France had an automatic NOC quota position (one man and one woman) for the Marathon Swimming event at the Paris 2024 Olympics. However, two men and two women athletes from France finished with a top 13 result in Doha, and thus both athletes from each gender obtained a quota place for their NOC without needing the automatic quota position, according to the qualifying procedures.
Therefore, in the Marathon Swimming competition for women, Brazil earned the quota position as the next highest placed athlete from the Doha event , and in the competition for men, Austria earned the quota position (according to D.2, final note).
Continental Representation | NOC quota positions earned at the World Aquatics Championships – Doha 2024
Four additional Marathon Swimming NOC quota positions per gender were obtained at the 2024 World Aquatics Championship through the Continental Representation criteria (D1.3).
For the women, the following countries earned an NOC quota position for Marathon Swimming at the Paris 2024 Olympics based on their performance at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships:
- Great Britain (Europe)
- Mexico (Americas)
- South Africa (Africa)
- People’s Republic of China (Asia)
The Continental Representation position for Oceania, however, which had no competing women athletes at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships outside of Australia – which had already qualified the maximum number of two women NOC quota positions for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Therefore, the Oceania Continental Representation position was allocated to the highest-placing woman competitor in the open water swimming 10km event in Doha whose country was not yet qualified for the Olympics (F.1). In this respect, Canada was reallocated this NOC quota spot.
For the men, the following countries earned an NOC quota position for Marathon Swimming at the Paris 2024 Olympics based on their performance at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships:
- Czechia (Europe)
- Mexico (Americas)
- Japan (Asia)
- Namibia (Africa)
As Oceania also had no competing men athletes at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships outside of Australia – which had already qualified the maximum number of two NOC quota positions for the Paris 2024 Games – the Oceania Continental Representation position was similarly allocated to the highest-placing competitor in the open water swimming 10km event for men in Doha whose country was not yet qualified for the Olympics (F.1).
In this respect, Poland was reallocated this NOC quota spot.
Additional Olympic Qualification Pathway for Marathon Swimming at the Paris 2024 Games
Men and women pool swimmers that achieve the Olympic qualification standard in either the 800m or 1500m freestyle and compete in at least one of these events in Paris will be eligible to compete for their country in the Paris 2024 Marathon Swimming event, provided that the country observes the rule of a maximum of two athletes per gender in Marathon Swimming at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Venue and Competition | Marathon Swimming at the Paris 2024 Olympics
Marathon Swimming will take place in the River Seine, at Pont Alexandre III and in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, from 8-9 August 2024.
Florian Wellbrock of Germany will come into the Paris 2024 Olympics as the defending Marathon Swimming champion for men. Ana Marcela Cunha of Brazil is the reigning Marathon Swimming titleholder for women.
Marathon Swimming made its Olympic debut at the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The Paris 2024 Olympics will be the fifth time that the sport is contested at the Games.
About the Paris 2024 Olympic Qualification Pathway for Marathon Swimming
World Aquatics worked closely with the IOC Sports Department and the leadership of the World Aquatics Open Water Swimming Technical Committee, and also consulted with its National Member Federations, to develop qualification principles for men and women for the Marathon Swimming events for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The Aquatics Olympics Qualification Principles for the Paris 2024 Games were published on 18 June 2022. For these principles, please refer to the following link: Aquatics Olympic Qualification System Principles.
Credit: World Acquatics
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