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Since our last update last month qualification procedures for five sports in the Paris 2024 Olympics have been revealed. Badminton, Canoe (Slalom and Sprint), Equestrian (Dressage, Eventing, and Jumping), Skateboarding, Sport Climbing (Boulder/Lead and Speed), and Weightlifting. Furthermore, one discipline in the sport of Cycling (Mountain bike) has also been revealed. Badminton Badminton retains its programme from Tokyo 2020, with a singles and doubles event for both genders, as well as a mixed doubles event. In singles, the top 35 athletes in the BWF 'Race to Paris Ranking List' of 30 April 2024 will qualify, with the following permutations: there can only be one athlete per NOC, or at most two if both are in the top 16. There must also be at least two athletes per continent. One place is given to the host country France, and the remaining two places are for universality. In doubles, the same BWF 'Race to Paris Ranking List' of 30 April 2024 is used for 16 pairs per event, with at most one per NOC, or at most two if both are in the top 8. If an athlete qualifies in both singles and doubles, this means that a further place is opened for the ranking list in singles. The lists are based on events between 2023 and 2024. The only change from last year is one universality place has been taken away and added to the ranking list. Canoe Slalom Canoe Slalom has received a boost from 2020 to 2024, with an Extreme Canoe Slalom event joining the Kayak and Canoe Single for both men and women. Someone who qualifies for one event can enter other events for their gender too, but at most one per NOC (two in Extreme Kayak). One athlete per NOC can qualify a place in each event, and each athlete can only qualify one quota place. 15 spots for Kayak and 12 for Canoe Single will be earned at the 2023 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships (Lee Valley, GBR, 19-24 Sep 2023). In Kayak and Canoe Single, one place for each of the five continents will be earned at Continental Qualification Tournaments (Dates and locations TBC, 2023) while one place in Kayak will go to the host nation. The three places per gender in Extreme Canoe Slalom will be at the Extreme Kayak Global Qualification Tournament (dates and locations TBC, 2024). The addition of Extreme Canoe Slalom notwithstanding, the system is largely the same as Tokyo 2020. Canoe Sprint The IOC giveth and the IOC taketh away: while Canoe Slalom gains two events, Canoe Sprint will lose two. For both genders, the Kayak Single 200m has disappeared. The other Kayak Single event (1,000m for Men and 500m for Women) has returned, as has a Kayak Double event (now 500m for both genders: it used to be 1,000m for Men), a Kayak Four 500m event, a Canoe Single event (1,000m for Men and 200m for Women), and a Canoe Double event (also now 500m for both genders instead of 1,000m for Men and 500m for Women). The quotas have also been reduced somewhat from 123 to 118 per gender. The primary event for qualification will be the 2023 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships (Duisburg, GER, 23-27 Aug 2023). 7 boats in Kayak Single and Canoe Double, 6 in Kayak Double and Canoe Single, and 4 in Kayak Four will be earned here. There will be one host country boat in Kayak Single and Canoe Single. In every event apart from Kayak Four places will be filled at the Continental Qualification Tournaments (dates and locations TBC), with two places per continent in each event, apart from Kayak Single and Canoe Single, where Africa and Oceania will get just one place. Finally, there are two universality places per gender in the entirety of Canoe Sport, these can be allocated by the ICF in either Slalom or Sprint. At most one boat per NOC can qualify per event, although two per NOC can enter an event. The removal of the "World Cup 2" event is the biggest change from 2020. Interestingly, the document is now unavailable to access: it is listed on both the IOC and ICF site, but the file does not show up. Probably a technical gremlin, but there is a small chance this could have some meaning and the document had a mistake of some sort. Equestrian Dressage Dressage's programme is unchanged from 2020, with 60 athletes at open individual and team events. There are fifteen teams that qualify (at most one per NOC). One for the host country (France), the six highest ranked at the 2022 FEI Dressage World Championships (Herning, DEN, 6-10 Aug 2022), and the remaining nine at regional qualification events. For Groups A and B three places are earned at the 2023 FEI European Dressage Championship (Riesenbeck, GER, dates TBC), for Group C there will be a Group C 2023 Designated Olympic Qualification Event (date and location TBC) yielding one place, for Groups D and E two places are earned at the 2023 Pan American Games (Santiago, CHI, 26-29 Oct 2023), while for Group F one place is earned at the 2022 World Championships, and the same is true for Group G. The teams are made up of three athletes, and each of the three also qualify for the individual event. The remaining fifteen places (most one per NOC) will be qualified like so: the two highest-ranked athletes in the FEI Olympic Ranking (date released tbc) in Groups A, B, C, F, and G will take the first ten spots, the top two individuals from Group D or E at the 2023 Pan American Games and the top two individuals from those groups at the FEI Olympic Ranking will take up the next four spots, and finally, the top-ranked athlete irrespective of Group will get the final place. This system is the same from Tokyo 2020. Equestrian Eventing Similar to Dressage, Eventing remains unchanged since 2020 with 65 athletes in open individual and team events. Sixteen teams qualify (at most one per NOC), including the host nation. Seven places are earned at the 2022 FEI Eventing World Championships (Pratoni del Vivaro, ITA, 14-18 Sep 2022). Two teams are earned for Group A and B at the 2023 FEI European Eventing Championships (Pin du Haras, FRA, 9-13 Aug 2023). One place is earned at a Group C 2023 Designated Olympic Qualification Event (date and location TBC), while the Pan American Games (Santiago, CHI, 26-29 Oct 2023) yields two places for Groups D and E. The top two ranked teams at a Group F and G Designated Olympic Qualification Event (date and location TBC), while the final spot is earned at the FEI Eventing Nations Cup 2023 (date and location TBC) Again, the teams are made up of three teams, and each of the three also qualify for the individual event. The remaining seventeen places (at most two per NOC) through the FEI Olympic Ranking: two per group and then the highest three otherwise. This system has one more team than 2020. Equestrian Jumping Like the other Equestrian events, the Jumping programme is unchanged since 2020 with 75 athletes in open individual and team events. 20 teams qualify (at most one per NOC). There are twenty teams, including one for the host nation. Five places are earned at the 2022 FEI Jumping World Championships (Herning, DEN, 10-14 Aug 2022). The highest rated team at the FEI Jumping Nations Cup Final 2022 (Barcelona, ESP, 29 Sep-2 Oct 2022) get the next spot. The top three Group A and Group B teams at the 2023 FEI Jumping European Championship (Milano, ITA, September 2023, exact dates TBC) get spots, as do the top two at a Group C 2023 Designated Olympic Qualification Event (location and date TBC). The top three ranked Group D or E teams at the 2023 Pan American Games (Santiago, CHI, 26-29 Oct 2023) get a place, as do the top two teams at a Group F 2023 Designated Olympic Qualification Event (location and date TBC) and the highest two teams at a Group G 2023 Designated Olympic Qualification Event (location and date TBC). Finally, the highest ranked team at the FEI Jumping Nations Cup Final 2023 (date and location TBC) get a place. The three team members gain a place in the individual event, with the remaining fifteen spots (at most one per NOC) are earned like this: the top two athletes in the FEI Olympic Ranking (publication date TBC) in Groups A, B, C, F, and G get the top ten spots, with the three highest athletes at the Pan American Games getting a spot as well as the highest ranked athlete from Groups D and E. Finally, the highest-ranked athlete irrespective of group yet to qualify gets the final place. The system is similar to that from Tokyo 2020. Mountain Biking Mountain Biking has received a small hit in 2024, with 36 athletes per gender (instead of 38) in the cross-country events. The top eight NOCs in the UCI Mountain Bike Olympic Qualification ranking (published 28 May 2024) will get two spots, and the next ten will get one, for a total of 26. Three spots will be earned at the 2023 Continental Championships (dates and locations TBC) with one spot each for Africa, America, and Asia. Finally, four spots (at most one per NOC) will be earned at the 2023 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships (Glasgow and Scotland, GBR, 3-13 August 2023). Finally, one spot per gender each will be given to the host spot and universality places. The most consequential change is that no country can have three places in an event. Rowing Rowing keeps its fourteen events from 2020 (Single Sculls, Pair, Double Sculls, Four, Quadruple Sculls, Eight, Lightweight Double Sculls in both genders) but there are now 251 instead of 263 places per gender. The primary qualification event will be the 2023 World Rowing Championships (Belgrade, SRB, 3-10 Sep 2023). This will qualify eleven athletes per gender in Pair and Double Sculls, nine per gender in Single Sculls, seven per gender in Four, Quadruple Sculls, and Lightweight Double Sculls, and five per gender in Eight. Places will be available at World Rowing Continental Regattas for the four continents (dates and locations TBC, Asia and Oceania count together). Five places are available for each continent except Europe (for whom three is available) for Single Sculls, and two places for each continent except Africa (for whom one is available) in Lightweight Double Sculls. Finally, two places per event can be earned at the World Rowing Final Olympic Qualification Regatta (Lucerne, SWI, dates TBC) in around May 2024. There is also one host place as well as two universality places per NOC. The changes from Tokyo 2020 are mostly minor, and the rule that each NOC has one boat per event is retained. Skateboarding Skateboarding returns with Park and Street events for both genders, and is upgraded from 40 to 44 athletes in each gender, or 22 per event. There are 3 spots per NOC at most per event. The top 20 athletes in each event, including one per continent, in the Olympic Skateboarding Rankings of 24 June 2024 will win a spot, with the remaining places going to the host and one for universality. This is a change from 2020 where places were earned at the World Championships. Sport Climbing (Boulder/Lead) While in 2020 there was one Sport Climbing event per gender for all three disciplines combined: boulder, lead, and speed, but now speed is its own event with a combined boulder and lead event remaining. Overall, there are now 34 sport climbers per gender, up from 20. There are 20 places in the combined Boulder/Lead event, at most two per NOC. Three athletes per gender (at most one per NOC) can earn a spot at the IFSC Climbing World Championships (Bern, SUI, 1-12 Aug 2023). Five more spots per gender are earned at the IFSC Continental Qualifiers (dates and locations TBC), including the Pan American Games (Santiago, CHI, 20 Oct-5 Nov 2023), with the winner of each continental event that will be held in the last four months of 2023 gaining a spot. Finally, an Olympic Qualifier Series will take place in 2024, yielding ten spots per gender. The final places will be for the host country and the universality place. The system is similar to that from Tokyo 2020. Sport Climbing (Speed) In these events, there are fourteen places per gender (at most two per NOC). 2 spots per gender (at most one per NOC) will be earned at the IFSC Climbing World Championships (Bern, SUI, 1-12 Aug 2023). Five spots are earned per gender at the IFSC Continental Qualifiers (dates and locations TBC), including the Pan American Games (Santiago, CHI, 20 Oct-5 Nov 2023), with the winner of each continental event that will be held in the last four months of 2023 gaining a spot. Finally, an Olympic Qualifier Series will take place in 2024, yielding five spots per gender. There is also one place each for the host country and the universality place. Weightlifting Weightlifting has been downsized significantly from 2020 to 2024, with 98 athletes per gender in seven weight classes now being sixty per gender in five: for men, 61, 73, 89, 102, and +102kg; and for women, 49, 59, 71, 81, and +81kg. This is twelve athletes per event, one per NOC, and at most three athletes per NOC per gender. The top ten athletes in the IWF Olympic Qualification Ranking (OQR) will qualify a place, as will one athlete per event by Continental representation: one athlete per gender in each of the five continents: so an African in one event, an Asian in another and so on. The ranking is published on 28 April 2024. Finally, the remaining place will be either the host country (in two events per gender) or the universality place (in three). This system is similar to that from Tokyo 2020. There are still qualification procedures to be released for Aquatics, Athletics, Football, Sailing, Surfing, Table Tennis, and Tennis, as well as the rest of Cycling: so 8 sports in total. Patrick Green Writer, Totallympics News

In a breaking news story, the 2022 Asian Games, which will serve as a qualifying competition for a number of Olympic sports, has been postponed indefinitely, according to reports from the People's Republic of China. The event, to be held in Hangzhou in China's Zhejiang Province, was set to take place from 10 to 25 September 2022, with preliminary events taking place from 6 to 9 September in Basketball, Football, Modern Pentathlon and Rowing. No information has been posted yet on either the website of the Olympic Council of Asia, who runs the event, nor Hangzhou 2022, but considering the media situation in China, it is difficult to imagine that this news was posted without official approval. The situation is the same for the 2022 Asian Para Games, to be held in the same city, from 9 to 15 October 2022. No reason has been given for the postponement, but with COVID-19 cases rising within China and the country's government pursuing a strict lockdown amidst a "zero-COVID" policy, it is speculated that it is in connection with this. The Asian Games is a qualifying event for a number of sports for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, including Archery and Hockey. Officials in the IOC and amidst governing bodies will be scrambling to modify their schedules. This also raises serious doubts about the 2021 Summer World University Games, to be held in Chengdu, also in China. The event, already postponed once from 16-27 August 2021 to 26 June-7 July 2022, could also be on the chopping block. With hosting rights for the next event in 2023 being stripped from Yekaterinburg of the Russian Federation due to that country's invasion of Ukraine, speculation has risen that Chengdu 2021 will be delayed again until 2023, and the event originally in Yekaterinburg will be cancelled altogether, before normal service is resumed in 2025. The 2021 Asian Youth Games in Shantou, delayed once already from September 2021 to December 2022, will also be under threat. Patrick Green Writer, Totallympics News

On 1 April, the schedule for Paris 2024 has been released, and with just over two years until the Games to go, there has been plenty of time to dissect it and look at some key dates. Remember, all times given are Paris time (UTC +2). The Games takes place over nineteen days. The day of the opening ceremony ("Day 0") is 26 July 2024, with some preliminary action starting in the two days before that, and then events taking place up until Day 16 (11 August), with the closing ceremony taking place once all the sport has finished. In 2020, Softball and Football were the only sports to begin before the day of the Opening Ceremony. Softball is of course not in Paris 2024, but Football retains that status, with two games in every stadium before the games begin: one game on Day -2 and one game on Day -1 for every stadium, except for the Parc des Princes in Paris, where two games will be on Day -2. The finals will be on Day 14 and Day 15 once again, both at the Parc des Princes. Kick-off times vary from 15:00 at the earliest to 21:00 at the latest, with the finals at 18:00 and 18:30 respectively. Another sport to begin before the Opening Ceremony is Rugby Sevens, which has action on both Day -2 and Day -1, with the Finals on Day 1 and Day 4: the final sessions will begin at 14:30.Tthe sport being earlier in the Games is because the sport is sharing the Stade de France with Athletics, which will have consecutive days of action from Day 7 to Day 15, with morning sessions (10:00-13:00) every day from Day 7 to Day 14: all medals will be handed out in the evenings (19:00-22:00). The Marathons, from the Hôtel de Ville to Invalides will be on Day 15 and Day 16, both beginning at 08:00, while the Race Walks on Pont d'Iéna will begin at 07:30 on Day 6 and Day 12: likely meaning the men's and women's events will be on the same day leaving the other one free for the new mixed relay. Handball at the Pierre Mauroy Stadium also begins before the Opening Ceremony and will be the first sport to begin, with action on both Days -2 and -1. It is also the only sport to take place on Day 0, with a session beginning at 09:00. It started after the Ceremony in Tokyo, but Handball does have a packed programme, with four two-hour sessions on some days. The finals are on Days 13 and 14, with the bronze matches from 16:30 and the gold matches from 21:00, a change from Tokyo where the final event was on the final day. Finally, the beginning of the Archery at Invalides is now on Day -1 instead of Day 0. Archery will resume on Day 2, with constant action until Day 9. The finals are on Days 2, 3, and 7 at 14:15 and Days 8 and 9 at 13:00. Beach Volleyball at the Eiffel Tower Stadium will be a constant, beginning at 10:00 on Day 1 and not finishing until Day 15, with action every day in between. The finals are at 21:00 on Day 14 and Day 15. Judo will also begin on Day 1 at the Champs de Mars Arena, with morning sessions mostly starting at 10:00, and the evening sessions were medals are handed out beginning at 16:00. This will last until Day 8, and Wrestling will take over the arena on Day 10, with morning and evening sessions. On Day 11, the medals will be handed out on on sessions beginning at 18:15, with this being the case for every day until Day 16, the day of the opening ceremony, where the session takes place at 11:00. Fencing is another sport to start with medals from Day 1 at the Grand Palais. There will be morning and evening sessions every day until Day 9, with the medals all handed out in the evening: sessions start from 19:00 to 19:30. On Day 12, Taekwondo will start in the same place, with three sessions per day for four days: the medals all handed out in the evening again, in sessions touted to last from 19:30 to 23:00. This is a change from Tokyo, where Taekwondo was in the first four days. In Road Cycling, the Time Trial from Invalides to Pont Alexandre III will be on Day 1, beginning at 14:30. The Road Races from Pont d'Iéna will take place on Day 8 and Day 9 (the 'middle weekend'), with the men's event on Saturday starting at 11:00 and the women's event at 14:00 on the Sunday. It seems there is a lot of emphasis on popular events taking place on these two days, which could explain the switch: in 2020 the road race was before the time trial. Skateboarding street events will take place on the first two days at La Concorde, which is the home of urban sports during the Games, with the early session from 12:00 and the evening one from 17:00 where medals are won. Park events are on Day 11 and Day 12, with all start times thirty minutes earlier than the street counterpart. BMX Freestyle events will also happen here, with a session on Day 4 and the medal session on Day 5 both starting at 14:00. Breaking, an all new sport, will take place on Days 14 and 15, with sessions at 16:00 and 20:00, the latter of which will see medals handed out. Basketball 3x3 is the most packed sport to happen at this venue, with action beginning on Day 4 and going non-stop until Day 10 with medals handed out in the final session beginning at 21:00. Tennis will take place at the famous Roland Garros, with all medals handed out on the P. Chatrier court. It will begin on Day 1 at 12:00, with the first medal handed out on Day 7 in a session starting at 19:00, but most handed out on the middle weekend again, with medals sessions on both days starting at 12:00. Boxing will also take place on the Suzanne Lenglen court, with action starting on Day 1 at 19:30 and preliminary sessions on Days 2 to 9 beginning at 10:30 and 19:30. After a break on Day 10, medals will be handed out on sessions on Days 11 to 15 starting at 20:00. Volleyball will once again be in action every day the flame is lit, starting at South Paris Arena on Day 1. The bronze matches will be on Day 14 at 17:00 and Day 15 at 13:00, with the finals on Day 15 at 17:00 and Day 16 at 13:00. Table Tennis takes place on every day from Day 1 to Day 15 this time, with medals handed out in sessions starting at 13:30 on Days 4, 8, and 9, and sessions starting at 15:00 on Days 14 and 15. Weightlifting has been compressed into the final five days of the Games, with medals being earned in every session: starting at 15:00 and 19:30 on the first three days, at 11:30, 16:00 and 20:30 on Day 15 and just the 11:30 session on Day 16. Artistic Gymnastics preliminaries at the Bercy Arena will take place on Days 1 and 2, with finals from Days 3 to 5 at 17:30, on Day 6 at 18:00, on Day 8 at 15:30, Day 9 at 15:00, and Day 10 at 13:00. The one-day gap is because Trampoline Gymnastics will have both medals on one day, with sessions at 12:00 and 18:00. The other event to take place at the arena will be Basketball. This starts at a location tbc with four preliminary games (the first starting at 11:00) each day from Day 1 to Day 9, with the final phase starting on Day 11. The finals will be on Day 15, with a bronze match at 18:00 and the final at 21:30, and on Day 16, with a bronze match at 10:30 and the final at 14:00. Badminton is the very first sport to start on Day 1 with action from Porte de La Chapelle Arena starting at 08:30. The finals start from 15:00 from Days 7 to 9, with two finals sessions on Day 10 starting at 09:45 and 14:30. Rhythmic Gymnastics also takes place here, starting on Day 13 and with finals sessions being on Day 14 at 14:30 and Day 15 at 14:00: this is a day earlier than 2020. Swimming will begin from Paris La Defense Arena on Day 1 with a uniform schedule from Day 1 to Day 8 with a preliminary session at 11:00 and a final session at 20:30, and then on Day 9 just a final session beginning at 18:30. This means that on Day 7 to Day 9, the Athletics and Swimming finals will clash, which will be disappointing to many. Water Polo will begin at the Aquatics Centre on Day 1 and go on every day there until Day 9, before moving to the Paris La Defense Arena, now vacated of swimmers, on Day 10. The medal matches will take place at 09:00 (bronze) and 14:00 (gold) on the final two days: water polo will therefore once again be the final event to end. Diving will also take place at the Aquatics Centre, with finals slipped in where gaps on the Water Polo schedule exist on Days 1, 3, 5, and 7 at 11:00 (likely the synchronised events) before action properly resumes on Day 10, with finals on Days 11, 13, 14 and 15 beginning at 15:00. Artistic Swimming, the final sport at the Aquatics Centre has sessions beginning at 19:30 every day from Day 10 to Day 15 apart from Day 13, the medals are handed out on Days 12 and 15. Shooting from La Corneuve will likely as per usual have the first medal handed out, with Rifle/Pistol medals handed out each of the first ten days in sessions starting at 09:00 except Days 5 and 10. Shotgun action will start on Day 3, with medals handed out on Days 4, 5, and 8 from 15:30 and Days 9 and 10 at 15:00. Modern Pentathlon will also get underway here with the Fencing Ranking Round on Day 13, before moving to Château de Versailles on Day 14. The laser runs start on Day 15 at 17:00 and Day 16 at 11:00: meaning the programme has been stretched by a day. The Château will mostly be known as the home of Equestrian however, with action beginning on Day 1 and sessions every day up to Day 11, with finals on Days 3, 6, 8 and 9 starting from 10:00-11:00, and on Day 11 starting at 14:00. Rowing started on Day 0 in 2020 but all action will be with a lit flame in 2024, with Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium seeing action every day from Day 1 to Day 8. 09:30 is the start time on Days 5 to 8, the days where medals will be won. Canoe Slalom will also take place here on all of the first ten days apart from Day 7, with finals starting at 15:30 on Days 2, 3, 5, 6, and 10. Finally, Canoe Sprint begins on Day 11 with action for five days, medals handed out on the last three of those with sessions beginning at 09:30. Yves-du-Manoir Stadium is the home of Hockey, and action starts from Day 1 and goes on for fourteen days. The bronze matches (14:00) and gold matches (19:00) take place on the last two days, similar to 2020. Surfing takes place in Teahupo'o in Tahiti, on the other side of the world. There is action on each of the first four days, beginning at 19:00, which is 07:00 local time. All medals are handed out on Day 4. Sailing from Marseille Marina begins on Day 2 with action every day until Day 13 starting at 11:00, and medal races on Days 6, 7, 11, 12 and 13. This was so that sailers could attend the opening ceremony. The Triathlon events at Pont Alexandre III start at 08:00 on Days 4, 5, and 10. Also taking place there is the Marathon Swimming, beginning on Days 13 and 14 at 07:30. Golf from the Golf National has its events from Day 6 to 9 and Day 12 to 15, starting at 09:00 each day. Sport Climbing from Le Bourget Sport Climbing Venue begins on Day 10, with a medal handed out each day from Day 11 to Day 14 at 17:00. Track Cycling from Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome also begins on Day 10, with medals handed out every day afterwards with sessions starting from 17:00-18:00 (apart from Day 16 where the session starts at 11:00): preliminary afternoon sessions also exist on Days 12 and 14. There is a slight overlap with the Athletics finals: the final hour of proceedings will overlap with the first hour of athletics, although for fans of both this should be manageable. This is a lot of sports to pack in, and the full schedule for your favourite sport is in this document, and of course everything is subject to change (and often will, with weather often moving rowing and sailing events in particular). However, here are some points to highlight: Athletics and Swimming to clash The Games' show-piece sports are scheduled around each other, with swimming in the first half of the games and athletics in the second half. However, just like Tokyo 2020, they will clash, with Day 7, 8, and 9 seeing both sports having action simultaneously. In 2020, this problem was worked around by having swimming finals in the morning session, but this doesn't seem to be the case this time. Fans of both sports will be disappointed in having to split attention. Most finals in the evening Swimming's reluctance to have finals in the morning seem part of a broader shift to having more finals in the evening. Perhaps this is due to the lucrative American broadcasters not wanting to have events in the middle of the night, which is understandable. But it does mean that more finals will take place together than in 2020, leaving to more multi-screen viewing for the TV audience. A focus on the 'middle weekend' Days 8 and 9 of the Games, the 'middle weekend', have been singled out for particular attention by organisers. As well as the finals in both Athletics and Swimming, there will also be finals in Tennis and Artistic Gymnastics, as well as the Cycling Road Races. The Games' most illustrious sports and those most popular in France will be very prevalent. Also present are Table Tennis. Team sports "spread out" On the final four days, the long team sports will come to an end, but they have been scheduled not to clash. The finals of volleyball, beach volleyball, hockey, handball, basketball, water polo and football will not clash. This could explain the increase in sports starting before the flame is lit, although another explanation is to make it so athletes can attend the Opening Ceremony, which might not have been the case with an early Day 1 start: a match on Day -2 or Day -1 would make this a bit easier. The schedule has been made so all athletes can attend at least one ceremony. Patrick Green Writer, Totallympics News

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has today revealed four more qualifying procedures, meaning more than half of the qualifying procedures for Paris 2024 are now known. Fencing, Golf, Judo and Taekwondo have all released their qualifying systems. Fencing Fencing has twelve events, six per gender: Individual Foil, Epée and Sabre events, and team equivalents. Just like 2020, there are a total of 106 athletes per gender. For each event, if an NOC qualifies a team, then the three team members also take part in the corresponding individual event. Otherwise, only one athlete can participate per NOC in the individual event (this is similar to Archery). For each team event, eight teams will qualify. The team members will take up 24 places in the individual events, with ten individuals qualifying for a maximum of 34. When universality and host places are added, an individual event can have at most 37 places. There is one male and one female universality place in total, and the hosts have six places, in addition to any places they qualify. All team places will be earned from the FIE official Senior Team Ranking List of 1 April 2024, with all four zones guaranteed at least one place if they have a team in the top 16. The ten individual places will be qualified as follows: six from the FIE Individual Senior Adjusted Official Ranking List of April 2024, discriminated by zone, with two for Europe and Asia-Oceania and one for America and Africa, and the winners of four FIE Zonal Qualifying Events in April 2024 (exact dates and locations tbc). The only change to the 2020 system is two host places have gone to the universality section. Golf Golf has a men's and women's event, and just like 2020, sixty golfers of each gender will participate at the Olympics. And the qualification system is unchanged too. There is one host spot, and 59 qualification spots. The Olympic Golf Ranking (17 June for men and 24 June for women) is the only qualification pathway. There are at most four athletes per NOC, but only if they are in the top fifteen: otherwise there is at most two. Also, there is a guaranteed place for all five continents. Finally, if the host spot is unused (as is likely) it will be a universality place instead. Judo Judo's programme is unchanged from 2020, with seven men's weight classes (60, 66, 73, 81, 90, 100, and +100kg), seven women's weight classes (48, 52, 57, 63, 70, 78, and +78kg) and a mixed team event. However, they have had their quotas reduced, with 186 men and 186 women, down from 193 of each in 2016 (so one less athlete per individual event). There is no direct qualification for the mixed team event: instead, if you have six eligible athletes (one man and one women from the three lightest classes, the three middle classes, and three heaviest classes) you automatically enter. Each individual event has at most one athlete per NOC. For each event, France will qualify a place. The top seventeen highest ranked athletes on the IJF World Ranking List (published 25 June 2024) for each event will qualify a place. Then, 100 additional places in total (50 per gender) will be qualified through Continental Rankings, listing all athletes in all events, separated per continent. The top 12 Africans in both genders, the top 13 European men and 12 European women, the top ten Asians in both genders, the top five Oceanians in both genders, and the top 10 Pan American men and 11 Pan American women will qualify. However, out of these 100 places, there is at most one per NOC. Finally, there are five Team invitation places: one NOC per continent that has five out of the six athletes necessary to qualify for the Mixed Team event will have the extra judoka qualified, so they can participate. There are also fifteen universality places. This system is similar to 2020's system. Taekwondo Taekwondo is another sport to be unchanged from 2020, with four men's weight classes (58, 68, 80, and +80kg) and four women's weight classes (49, 57, 67 and 67kg). Each event has sixteen places, although athletes from the Refugee Olympic Team might be added as a seventeenth. There is one athlete per NOC per event. There are fifteen qualification spots per event, with either one of the two host spots per gender or one of the two universality places per gender to make up the sixteenth place. Five athletes per event qualify from the WT Olympic Ranking published on 6 January 2024. The winner of the WT Grand Slam Champions Series (Wuxi, CHN, 16-17 Dec 2023) in each event qualifies one spot, with the remaining nine spots earned at the Continental Qualification Tournaments, two for every continent apart from Oceania, which just gets one. These four systems are all very similar to 2020, and are all mostly rankings based. Fifteen sports (Aquatics, Athletics, Badminton, Canoe, Cycling, Equestrian, Football, Rowing, Sailing, Skateboarding, Sport Climbing, Surfing, Tennis, Table Tennis and Weightlifting) are yet to publish their system. Patrick Green Writer, Totallympics News

The first qualifying procedures have been released for Paris 2024. With thirty-two sports split into forty-seven "disciplines" in Paris 2024, the first eighteen disciplines in thirteen sports have been released. They are: Archery, Basketball (Basketball and Basketball 3x3), Boxing, Breaking, Gymnastics (Artistic, Rhythmic, and Trampoline), Handball, Hockey, Modern Pentathlon, Rugby Sevens, Shooting, Triathlon, Volleyball (Beach Volleyball and Volleyball), and Wrestling. Totallympics News will provide coverage on each qualification system as and when it is released. In this post, we will have a look at the ten qualification procedures already released. Archery Archery retains five events, with a men's and women's individual team, and a mixed team. Twelve nations per gender, including hosts France, will qualify a team, with the three members of the team also participating in the individual events. The remaining 28 spots, including two universality places, will be earned on an individual basis, with at most one per NOC. There is no separate qualifying for the mixed team, with entry automatic for every NOC with at least one athlete per gender. The team section has been changed, with a ranking and a continental system added. The 2023 World Archery Championship (Berlin, GER, 28 Jul-6 Aug 2023) will earn just three spots, down from eight. Three of those spots will go to the winners of Continental Championships (exactly which events are yet to be announced) for Europe, Asia, and the Americas. There will still be a Final World Team Qualification Tournament (date and location to be announced) for three places. Finally, two places will be earned for a Team World Ranking List, the date which will count will be announced at a later date. The winners of the mixed team competition at five Continental Games will qualify one individual spot for both genders. These are the 2022 Asian Games (Huangzhou, CHN, 10-25 Sep 2022), the 2023 European Games (Krakow, POL, 21 Jun-2 Jul 2023), the 2023 Pan-American Games (Santiago, CHI, 20 Oct-5 Nov 2023), and the 2023 Pacific Games (Honiara, SOL, Nov 19-1 Dec 2023). The 2023 African Games (Accra, GHA, Dates to be announced) are also meant to be part of this, but as of right now, archery is not on the programme. If this remains the case, one extra place per gender will be available for the Individual Qualifying Tournament. The remaining twenty-one places per gender are earned individually. Three will be earned at the 2023 World Archery Championship, two each will be earned at three Continental Games (the Asian Games, European Games, and Pan-American Games), and ten will be earned at five Continental Qualification Tournaments (which tournaments exactly will be announced by 31 December 2022): three for Europe, two each for Asia, the Americas, and Africa, and one for Oceania. Finally two (plus the potential reallocated African Games spot) will be earned at the Final World Individual Qualification Tournament (date and location to be announced). This system is similar to the one used for 2020, although more priority is given to Continental Games than Continental Qualification Tournaments. All-in-all, a new system for 2020. Artistic Gymnastics Artistic Gymnastics retains its fourteen events from Tokyo 2020, with eight men's events (Team, All-Around, Floor Exercise, Pommel Horse, Rings, Vault, Parallel Bars, and Horizontal Bars) and six women's events (Team, All-Around, Vault, Uneven Bars, Balance Beam, Floor Exercise). The total amount of athletes has been reduced however, with 96 spots per gender, down from 98. One spot per gender will be guaranteed to the host nation, France, although the team is considered strong enough to get at least one place for each gender anyway. A team of five athletes can qualify for an NOC: these five can then choose which individual events they want to take place in. An NOC without a team qualified can bring at most three athletes. This is a big change from 2020, where there were teams made up of four. Twelve teams will qualify per gender, with a similar format to 2016: The top three teams qualifying in the 2022 World Championships (Liverpool, GBR, 29 Oct-6 Nov 2022) and the remaining nine in the 2023 World Championships (Antwerp, BEL, 1-8 Oct 2023). However, the individual qualification places (34 per gender) have a new format in 2024: remember, these can only be earned by athletes not in a team. The top 3 teams at the 2023 World Championships not to qualify will gain one individual athlete per gender. The top eight male and top fourteen female All-Around athletes at the 2023 World Championships will gain a quota as well: only one place per NOC can be gained here. The winner of the six male and four female Apparatus finals at the 2023 World Championships will also gain a quota. The top two in each apparatus at the 2024 FIG World Cup (Athens, GRE, 15-17 Mar 2024; Pesaro, ITA, 22-24 Mar 2024; Sofia, BUL, 12-14 Apr 2024; Baku, AZE, 19-21 Apr 2024; Tashkent, UZB, 26-28 Apr 2024) will gain a spot: so twelve men and eight women. Finally, the winner (or highest-placed eligible athlete) of All-Around competitions in 2024 Continental Championships (a total of five for each gender) will take the final spots. It is yet to be announced which events will count, but the FIG prefers them to take place from April to May 2024. If, as expected, the hosts reallocate their place, it will be an extra place earned at the 2023 World Championships for the All-Around category, effectively boosting that to having nine male and fifteen female athletes qualifying. Basketball Basketball retains two twelve-team tournaments, just like Tokyo 2020. The qualification system for eleven teams each (as one spot goes to hosts France) is the same, differing however between men and women. For men, seven teams qualify from the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup (Various cities, IDN, JPN, PHI, Aug 25-Sep 10 2023): the top two teams from America and Europe and the top team from Africa, Asia, and Oceania. Qualification is in progress for that event. The remaining four spots will be earned in 2024 at FIBA Olympic Qualification Tournaments (Date and location tbc), which will include nineteen teams from the World Cup and five from Olympic pre-qualifying tournaments: the winners of each of the four tournaments, with six teams each, will earn the final spot. For women, only the champion of the 2022 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup (Sydney, AUS, 22 Sep-1 Oct 2022) will qualify: the qualification procedure for that is finished. The remaining ten places will be earned at FIBA Olympic Qualification Tournaments (Date and location tbc): there will be four groups of four, with the top three qualifying, although France and the Women's World Cup champions will be included: in the groups with those two, only two places will be earned. This is no change from the Tokyo 2020 system. Basketball 3x3 Basketball 3x3 retains its two 8-team tournaments from 2020. There is a change to the system (which is the same for men and women). Now, only the top three teams (down from four) qualify a spot on the 3x3 Federation Ranking List of 1 November 2023. There are now two 2024 Universality-driven Qualification Tournaments (locations and dates for both TBC), with eight teams in both and one winner, and finally, a 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament that is still worth three places. Also, if France don't qualify a place, then whichever genders team is ranked higher takes a ranking place off the lowest-qualified team. Beach Volleyball Beach Volleyball retains a men and a women's 24-team tournament (max 2 teams per NOC) from 2020. With one spot to the hosts, there are 23 teams qualifying per NOC. However, they have removed a qualification tournament that gained two spots, with two more teams earned by world ranking. Firstly, the winner of the 2023 FIVB Beach Volleyball Senior World Championships (date and location TBC) gets a place. Then, the top seventeen (or eighteen should the host spot get reallocated) teams of the Olympic Ranking List of 10 June 2024 will get a spot. Finally, the winners of five Beach Volleyball Continental Qualification Events will earn spots. These dates will be confirmed by 31 May 2022. The final phase of these will be hosted in June 2024, after the publication of the ranking. A simple system to follow. Boxing Boxing has had a switch from 2020. That year, there were eight male weight classes, and five female ones, but now there are seven male weight classes (51, 57, 63.5, 71, 80, 92 and +92kg weight limits) and six female ones (50, 54, 57, 60, 66, and 75kg weight limits). There will be 124 athletes in each gender (compared to 206 men and 80 women in Tokyo), a total of 248, which is down from 286 in 2020. Each event will still have at most one athlete per NOC. To breakdown by event: Women's 54 and 66kg: 24 places Women's 50kg: 22 places Men's 63.5 and 71kg, Women's 57kg: 20 places Men's 57 and 80kg, Women's 75kg: 18 places Men's 51, 92, and +92kg, and Women's 60kg: 16 places The first event in the calendar are the 2023 IBA World Boxing Championships (Tashkent, UZB, dates TBC) and 2023 IBA Women's World Championships (dates and locations TBC). The finalist of each event will earn a spot: as there are thirteen men's and ten women's categories, this means most events will actually get four spots: the Men's +92kg and Women's 57 and 60kg will get two spots. Then, the Olympic Ranking Lists of 31 December 2023 will earn six spots per event. France are guaranteed at least four men and at least three women, and there are also four male and five universality spots: the confirmation of these will affect the exact amount of quotas up for grabs in the Olympic Ranking Lists of 31 March 2024. Finally, in May 2024, a World Qualification Tournament (locations and dates TBC) will earn two spots for each event. A new-look system for the new-look IBA. Breaking The new sport of Breaking has sixteen participants per gender (at most two per NOC). One spot goes to hosts France, and two will be earned by way of "universality", meaning there are thirteen qualification spots. The winner of the WDSF World Championship (Leuven, BEL, 22-24 Sep 2023) will earn a spot as will the winner of five Continental Games/Championships (although exactly which Games or Championships are still to be confirmed). Finally seven athletes in each gender (or eight if the French spot is reallocated) will earn a spot at the Olympic Qualifier Series. Handball Handball retains a 12-team tournament for both genders from 2020. The system has not changed for 2020, with eleven qualification spots each once the host spot is allocated to France. The first spot goes to the winner of the IHF Men's World Championship 2023 (POL and SWE, 11-29 Jan 2023) and the winner of the IHF Women's World Championship 2023 (DEN, NOR, and SWE, exact dates TBC). The winners of four Continental Qualification Events: for men the Pan-American Games, an Asian event pencilled in for autumn 2023, the 2024 European Championship (GER, 10-28 Jan 2024) and the January 2024 African Championship (location and exact dates tbc); and for women the Pan-American Games, an Asian event also in autumn 2023, the 2022 European Women's Handball Championship (MNE, MKD, SLO, 4-20 Nov 2022), and an African event currently meant to take place in 2023. The final six places will be earned at three Olympic Qualifying Tournaments (dates and locations TBC) that will be held in March 2024 for men and the next month for women. A familiar qualifier for a familiar Olympic sport. Hockey Another team sport returning from 2020, there is a 12-team tournament for both genders. Once France get their spot, eleven places are earned in qualifiers for each gender. Unlike 2020, the system is the same for men and women. Five spots are earned by winning Continental Qualifications: these being the 2022 Asian Games, 2023 Pan-American Games, the 2023 African Hockey "Road to Paris" Championships (dates and locations TBC), the 2023 EuroHockey Championships (Monchengladbach, GER, exact dates TBC), and the 2023 Oceania Cup (dates and locations TBC). The top three teams in two FIH Olympic Qualification Tournaments (dates and locations to be announced on 6 November 2023) will win the final spots, a change from 2020 when play-offs were used. Modern Pentathlon Modern Pentathlon retains 36 athletes in each gender: at most two per NOC. With one host spot and two invitational spots, there are 33 qualifying spots per gender, and the system is the same for both, being mostly similar to the 2020 system. The winner of the 2023 UIPM World Cup Final (date and locations TBC) will earn a spot, but twenty (at most one per NOC) will be from various Continental Championships (date and locations TBC): eight for Europe, five for Asia and for Pan America (with one spot for first place, one for the next two North Americans (which includes Central America and the Caribbean) and one for the next two South Americans), and one for Africa and Oceania. Three spots will be earned at the 2023 UIPM Pentathlon World Championships (Bath, GBR, dates TBC), and finally, six will be earned through the UIPM Olympic Pentathlon World Ranking List of 17 June 2024. Rhythmic Gymnastics Rhythmic Gymnastics is a female-only sport, and there are now only 94 athletes, instead of 96. There are still fourteen group (of five, so 70 athletes), but now just 24 individuals, down from 26. There are fourteen teams, including France, with thirteen qualification spots. The top three teams at the 2022 World Championships (Sofia, BUL, 14-18 Sep 2022) will get a spot, as will the top five teams (or six should the French spot be reallocated) at the 2023 World Championships (Valencia, ESP, 21-27 Aug 2023). The final five spots will go to the winners of the 2024 Continental Championships, dates and locations of which are to be confirmed. Unlike artistic gymnastics, the group competition is not integrated in qualifying with the individual one. With 26 places available (at most two per NOC), including one host spot and one universality place, there are 24 qualification spots to fight for. The top three individuals at the 2022 World Championships, the top fourteen (or fifteen should the French spot be reallocated) at the 2023 World Championships, and the winners of the five 2024 Continental Championships get a spot. A relatively simple system to follow, then. Rugby Sevens Rugby Sevens retains its 12-team tournaments from 2020: that includes a host spot each. The eleven qualification spots are the same as in 2020. The top four teams in the 2022-3 World Rugby Sevens World Series, the details of which will be announced by 30 June 2022 corresponding to each gender will gain a spot, as will the winners of six Regional Association Olympic Qualification Tournaments in 2023 and a Final Olympic Repechage Tournament which should happen in 2024. Details and locations for all events are to be confirmed. Shooting Shooting retains thirteen events from 2020, although now there are only 170 athletes per gender, instead of 180. The programme is slightly changed. The men's and women's events are the same (10m Air Rifle, 50m 3 Positions, 10m Air Pistol, 25m Rapid Fire Pistol (Men)/25m Pistol (Women), Trap, and Skeet) while the Mixed Team in 10m Air Rifle and 10m Air Pistol also remain, although the Mixed Team Trap is replaced for a mixed Team Skeet event. There is no mixed team qualification: instead those with one man and one woman in each event can enter a corresponding mixed team: at most two teams per NOC. At most twelve men and at most twelve women per NOC can qualify, and at most two athletes per individual event per NOC can qualify. There are 25 qualification spots per event, with a host country spot, one universality spot (two in the air rifle and air pistol events) and one earned at the Olympic Qualification Ranking of 9 June 2024. In the Air Rifle and Air Pistol events, four spots are earned at the 2022 World Rifle and Pistol Championship (Cairo, EGY, 12-25 Oct 2022). One spot will be earned at the 2022 CAT Championship (Lima, PER, 9-16 Nov 2022). Two spots are earned at the 2023 European 10m Championship (Tallinn, EST, 5-15 Mar 2023). One spot is earned at the 2023 European Games, one at the 2023 Pan-American Games, and another two at the 2023 Asia Championship (Changwon, KOR, exact dates tbc), four at the 2023 World Championship (14-31 Aug 2023, location TBC), two at the 2023 Africa Championship (Cairo, EGY, exact dates 1-10 Oct 2023), two at the 2024 European 10m Championship (Gyor, HUN, exact dates TBC), one at the 2024 CAT Championship, two at the 2024 Asia Rifle and Pistol Championship (date and location tbc), two from a 2024 Final Olympic Qualification Championship (date and location TBC) and one from an Oceania Championship (date and location TBC). For the 25m and 50m events, two spots are earned at the 2022 European 25m/50m Championship (Wroclaw, POL, 5-18 Sep 2022). Four spots are earned at the 2022 World Rifle and Pistol Championship, one at the 2022 CAT Championship, one at the 2023 European Games, one (two for 25m events) at the 2023 Pan-American Games, two at the 2023 Asia Championship, four at the 2023 World Championship, one at the 2023 Africa Championship, two at the 2024 European 25m/50m Qualification Event (dates and locations tbc), one at the 2024 CAT Championship, two at the 2024 Asia Rifle and Pistol Championship, two from a 2024 Final Olympic Qualification Championship and two (one for 25m events) from the mysterious Oceania Championship. The trap and skeet events will be the first event to get underway, with the 2022 European Shotgun Championships (Larnaca, CYP, 24 Aug-12 Sep 2022) earning two spots. Four spots will be earned at the 2022 World Shotgun Championship (Osijek, CRO, 22 Sep-11 Oct 2022), one at the 2022 CAT Championship, one at the 2023 European Shotgun Championship (Leobersdorf, AUT, 25 Jul-6 Aug 2023), two at the 2023 Pan-American Games, two at the 2023 Asia Championship, four at the 2023 World Championship, one at the 2023 Africa Championship, one at the 2024 European Shotgun Championship (Dates and locations TBC), one at the 2024 CAT Championship, two at the 2024 Asia Shotgun Championship (Date and locations TBC), two at the 2024 Final Olympic Qualification Championship and one from the Oceania Championship. The main headline is the removal of World Cup events, and remember that quotas earned in one event can be used in a second as long as the athlete is eligible in both (i.e. gets the minimum entry standard). The headline is the removal of the World Cup events, which is sure to split opinion. Trampoline The only form of gymnastics not to have its quotas cut, it retains sixteen men and sixteen women in 2024. There can be at most two places per NOC, but only three NOCs per gender can earn two places. The highest eight ranked athletes per gender in the 2023 World Championships (Birmingham, GBR, 9-12 Nov 2023). The remaining eight spaces will be won at the 2023-4 Trampoline Individual World Cup Series, dates and locations of which are to be confirmed. However, if a continent doesn't have a place then a spot will be allocated to a relevant 2024 Continental Championship. A host spot and a universality spot may also be taken away from the World Cup series. Triathlon Triathlon avoids any cuts from 2020 to 2024, with 55 athletes from each gender: at most three per NOC. There is a men's, women's, and mixed team event. There are no qualification spots for mixed teams, instead, any NOC with at least two in each gender can enter a mixed team. However, there are some mixed team events that do qualify two places per gender, thus guaranteeing a place in the mixed relay. This includes an automatic spot for the host nation, a spot for the winner of the 2022 World Triathlon Mixed Relay Championships (Montreal, CAN, 26 Jun 2022), a spot for the winner of the 2023 World Triathlon Mixed Relay Championships (Hamburg, GER, date TBC), six spots on offer from the World Triathlon Mixed Relay Ranking of 25 March 2024, and two spaces on offer at the 2024 Mixed Relay Olympic Qualification Event (dates and location TBC). All 31 individual spots (earned separately for each gender) are earned for the World Triathlon Olympic Qualification Ranking of 27 May 2024: the top 26, and then the highest next athlete per continent. Finally, there are two universality places. Just like 2020, there is a mostly ranking-based system for Olympic qualifying. Volleyball Volleyball retains two twelve-team tournaments from 2020 to 2024: so eleven qualification spots once France are taken out. Two spots each are earned in three 2023 Olympic Qualification Tournaments (in each gender, locations tbc: 16-24 Sep 2023 for women, 30 Sep-8 Oct 2023 for men), but in a major shake-up, the remaining five will be earned based on World Rankings (17 June 2024 for women and 24 June 2024 for men). This will be a massively controversial shakeup: with supporters and detractors. Wrestling Finally, we come to Wrestling, a sport for which both disciplines (Greco-Roman and Freestyle) have had their system released together. Greco-Roman is a men-only event, with 96 men participating in six weight classes (60, 67, 77, 87, 97, and 130kg), and 96 of each gender in Freestyle: six weight classes for both men (57, 65, 74, 86, 97, and 125kg) and women (50, 53, 57, 62, 68, and 76kg). There are sixteen spots per event. The top five athletes for each event at the 2023 Senior World Championships (Krasnoyarsk, RUS, 16-24 Sep 2023, obviously take that with a pinch of salt) gain a place. Then, the top two athletes at four 2024 Continental Qualification Tournaments (African & Oceania Tournament, 22-24 Mar 2024, European Tournament, 4-7 Apr 2024, Asian Tournament, 12-14 Apr 2024, Pan-American Tournament, 19-21 Apr 2024, locations all TBC) gain a place. Finally, the top three athletes for each event at the 2024 World Qualification Tournament (9-12 May 2024, location TBC) will earn a place. Plenty of things to debate: it seems in general, there is a move towards rankings-oriented systems, although there is a lot of variation. Let's see if this trend continues for other sports. Patrick Green Writer, Totallympics News

Hello all, As qualification systems are starting to be released for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Totallympics is reviving its news section. Founded in 2020 as "Qualifying to the Games", the section was put on hold in 2021. It has rebranded to "Totallympics News" with an aim to publish regular articles leading up to Paris 2024 and beyond. In the past, this was more in the style of a blog, with irregular articles mostly published when a writer had a whim to write on a topic interesting them. The aim of this project is to provide a more comprehensive news section to compliment the forum. There is no sports news site currently has a primary focus on Olympic qualifications, and therefore we can help fill that gap. I hope people continue to use and enjoy Totallympics, and if you are interested in helping in this project, please contact the site admin @Sindo. Patrick Green Writer, Totallympics News