After making its debut at the Tokyo Games, sport climbing returns at Paris 2024 for its second Olympic appearance. With two medal events taking place instead of just one, even more athletes will qualify for the Olympic Games this time around.
Read on to learn more about the qualification process for Olympic hopefuls in sport climbing.
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How many athletes qualify for sport climbing at the 2024 Olympics?
In speed climbing, 28 athletes (14 men, 14 women) will qualify. For the bouldering and lead combined events, 40 athletes (20 men, 20 women) will qualify.
Each country can qualify a maximum of two men and two women per event.
How do athletes qualify for the speed climbing event at the 2024 Olympics?
Qualification takes place across three phases, each detailed below. The process is the same for both men and women.
As the Olympic host nation, France automatically gets one athlete per gender, provided that certain conditions are met. If an athlete from France earns a quota spot via one of the methods below, then the host country spot will be reallocated elsewhere.
An additional quota spot per gender is available for a universality invitation, which is given to an athlete from a country with a historically small Olympic delegation.
2023 World Championships (August 2023)
The top-two athletes per gender earned a quota spot.
Continental Qualifiers (September – December 2023)
For each of the five continents (Europe, Americas, Asia, Oceania, Africa), a qualifying event was held. The top athlete at each event earned a quota spot, provided they did not already qualify through the 2023 World Championships.
Olympic Qualifier Series (May – June 2024)
This series of invite-only events — the first in Shanghai in May, the second in Budapest in June — will be the final chance to qualify for Paris. The top-five finishers in the Olympic Qualifier Series will earn quota spots.
How do athletes qualify for the bouldering and lead combined event at the 2024 Olympics?
Qualification takes place across three phases, each detailed below. The process is the same for both men and women.
As the Olympic host nation, France automatically gets one athlete per gender, provided that certain conditions are met. If an athlete from France earns a quota spot via one of the methods below, then the host country spot will be reallocated elsewhere.
An additional quota spot per gender is available for a universality invitation, which is given to an athlete from a country with a historically small Olympic delegation.
2023 World Championships (August 2023)
The top-three athletes per gender earned a quota spot.
Continental Qualifiers (October – December 2023)
For each of the five continents (Americas, Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa), a qualifying event was held. The top athlete at each event earned a quota spot, provided they did not already qualify through the 2023 World Championships.
Olympic Qualifer Series (May – June 2024)
This series of invite-only events — the first in Shanghai in May, the second in Budapest in June — will be the final chance to qualify for Paris. The top-10 finishers in the Olympic Qualifier Series will earn quota spots.
Who will compete in Olympic sport climbing for Team USA?
So far, six athletes have earned quota spots for the Paris Games and will compete on the 2024 U.S. Olympic sport climbing team.
The U.S. can still qualify two more athletes — one in men's speed, one in women's bouldering and lead combined — via the Olympic Qualifier Series in May and June.