How to qualify in Cycling

BMX racing places (per gender)

The ranking adds up, for each country's three best riders (elite and under-23 together):

A rider with points in both elite and under-23 counts once, in the higher. Ties go to the country's best rider on the elite, then under-23, then junior ranking. Europe and Oceania must each have a country among the ranking places.

Who can ride (racing): born on or before 31 December 2010; a UCI licence; at least 10 points on the BMX racing individual ranking of 30 May 2028; at least one World Championships or World Cup in the qualification period.

BMX freestyle places (per gender)

• Qualifier Series: the top six riders, at most two per country. The series places are given out first.
• World Championships: the best countries from continents with no place yet, one per country. Once every continent has a place, the next best countries.
• At most two riders per country.

Who can ride (freestyle): born on or before 31 December 2013 (15 in 2028); a UCI licence; at least one Qualifier Series event, World Championships or World Cup in the qualification period.

Where the document disagrees with itself. Section C gives the freestyle qualification period as 1 November 2026 to 11 June 2028; the timeline starts it on 3 November 2026 and ends it at the last Qualifier Series event (1 to 4 June 2028).

Places turned down

• Racing: down the ranking, or down the same championship results, then the ranking.
• Freestyle: a rider's place goes down the Qualifier Series ranking; a country's place goes down the 2027 World Championships results.

Dates

Where to follow it

uci.org publishes the BMX racing ranking and the freestyle results.

Places (per gender)

The qualification ranking

• Adds up the points of each country's three best riders in all events that count for the UCI cross-country rankings.
• Two periods added together: 27 April 2026 to 30 May 2027, and 31 May 2027 to 29 May 2028.
• At most two continental championships per continent count (the two latest).
• Ties go to the country with the best-placed rider.
• Europe and Oceania must each have a country; if not, the best of them takes the last ranking place.

Continental and World Championships places

• Only for countries without a ranking place; one per country.
• If no country on a continent is eligible, the place goes to the best country from that continent on the ranking.
• At the World Championships, the elite race is used first. Countries placed through the elite race are left out of the under-23 count.

Who can ride

• Born on or before 31 December 2009.
• A UCI licence.
• At least 10 points on the UCI cross-country individual ranking of 30 May 2028.

One rider using a place from another cycling discipline can be added in the five days before entries close (22 to 26 June 2028), within the limit of two.

Places turned down

Down the qualification ranking; continental and World Championships places go first down the same results, then to the ranking.

Dates

Where to follow it

uci.org publishes the Mountain Bike Olympic Qualification Ranking.

Road race places (per gender)

The ranking. The UCI road ranking by nations of 19 October 2027 counts elite and under-23 results on the UCI road calendar over the previous 52 weeks. The date is the end of the 2027 road season and is provisional until the 2027 calendar is confirmed.

Europe and Oceania are not given continental places. If either has no country on the ranking places, its best country takes the last place, and the bottom country loses one.

World Championships and continental places are one per country, for countries with no ranking place.

Per country: four riders per gender in the road race, two in the time trial. One extra rider from another cycling discipline can be added to the road race in the five days before entries close (22 to 26 June 2028), within the limit of four.

Time trial places (per gender, 35 riders)

Only countries with a road race place can have time trial riders.

Each continent must have at least two countries in the time trial; if not, its best-ranked country with a road race place gets one, and the bottom of the ranking loses one. The host's guaranteed places are for the road race only.

Where the document disagrees with itself. The opening table gives two universality places per gender but only two in the total column; its grand total of 180 counts four. Section D.1 speaks of "a maximum of 88 qualification quota places"; the routes in D.1 add up to 86, and 88 with the host places.

Who can ride

• Born on or before 31 December 2009.
• A UCI licence.
• At least 10 points on the UCI individual road ranking of 19 October 2027 or 13 June 2028.

Places turned down

A road race place goes first to a country with no road race place that had a rider in the top 10 of the 2027 World Championships time trial, then down the ranking of countries. A time trial place goes down the ranking to countries with a road race place, then down the World Championships time trial results.

Dates

Where to follow it

uci.org publishes the road world ranking by nations.

Places by event (per gender)

Extra entries from a team place:

• Team sprint countries can enter two riders in each of the sprint and keirin, from their team sprint squad. Up to 30 riders per event.
• Team pursuit countries can enter a madison pair. Up to 14 pairs.
• Madison countries can enter one omnium rider. Up to 19 riders.

The country must confirm its place in the first event to use the extra entry.

Per country: eight riders per gender (nine if one rider from another cycling discipline is added). One team sprint team, one team pursuit team, one madison pair, one omnium rider, two sprinters and two keirin riders.

Every continent gets a sprinter and an endurance rider. If a continent has no rider in any sprint event, its best country on the sprint and keirin ranking gets a sprint and keirin place. The same applies to the endurance events (team pursuit, madison, omnium) through the omnium ranking. The places come off the bottom of the ranking.

The qualification ranking

Points scale for the omnium, sprint and keirin (per rider):

Team events score more: a team pursuit win is 2000 at the World Championships (500 per rider), a team sprint win 1500 (500 per rider), a madison win 2000 (1000 per rider).

So winning the Asian Championships sprint (600 × 0.75 = 450) is worth less than fourth at a World Cup (600).

Who can ride

• Born on or before 31 December 2010.
• A UCI licence.
• At least 10 UCI points in an event on the qualification ranking.

Places turned down

The next country on the same ranking that has not qualified, from the same continent if a continent's only place is affected.

Dates

Where to follow it

uci.org publishes the Track Olympic Qualification Ranking after each counting event.