Olympic qualification in track and field can be complicated

By Callum Ng

If Usain Bolt was an American he wouldn't be going to Rio.

And if he was Canadian he might also be out of luck. That's according to the selection criteria which will help determine how Canada's track and field team will be chosen July 7 to 10 at Olympic Trials in Edmonton.

Good thing Bolt is Jamaican.

The back-to-back Olympic champion withdrew during his country's national championships, citing a pesky hamstring issue. Because Jamaica has a medical exemption, the world record holder will still likely be in Rio.

The U.S. and Canada have no similar medical exemption although Athletics Canada officials have clarified that they do indeed have discretionary reasoning to include a high-profile athlete like Bolt on the team.

Here's how some of track and field's top nations chose their Olympic teams:

United States

What is the easiest way to qualify? Finish top 3 at the U.S. trials and meet the standard set by the IAAF for the event.

Other way to qualify? If there are any spots left over, the USATF says they'll name athletes who have the qualification standard from an earlier time, based on their finish at Trials.

Are there any exemptions? Nope, no special treatment for anyone.   

Possible? A six-time U.S. champion doesn't make the team. Actually, it happened. On Monday Alysia Montano fell in the 800-metre final and finished eighth.

Canada

What is the easiest way to qualify? Finish top 2 at Trials, have the IAAF standard during the qualification window, and you're good. (Athletes who made the standard prior to March 1, however, had to also prove "competitive readiness" in recent months by achieving targets agreed to with the head coach.)

Obviously the Trials are critical, so the pressure must be managed. "I think this is just an opportunity to get in and treat this as any other race, said Melissa Bishop, Canadian record holder in the 800-metres. "Take away the (Trials) title and really focus on racing and racing really well."  

Other way to qualify? Athletes who own a qualification standard and compete at Trials have a chance. There is discretion for the head coach based on published reasoning.

Are there any exemptions? No, Canadians must compete at the Trials to be make the team and the athletes respect this. "Standards are put out ahead of time everybody knows what we have to be doing, rules are the rules," said Bishop, who won silver at the 2015 worlds and is a podium hopeful for Rio.

Possible? Melissa Bishop finishes eighth and still makes the team. Possible. As of now only two other women have the 800-metres standard, so if Bishop finishes behind them it's ok, she could still get the third spot. 

The qualification details are different for the marathon, 10,000-metres, race walk, and combined events. Lanni Marchant wants to run both the 10,000-metres and marathon in Rio, but it is unclear if Athletics Canada will enter her in both. 

Great Britain

What is the easiest way to qualify? It's tougher to be British. You must be top 2 at Trials and hit the qualification standard twice within a time range.

Other ways to qualify? The third spot in each event is awarded with discretion but with a variety of criteria as a guide, similar to Canada.

Are there any exemptions? Yes, both the Chief Medical Officer and the Performance Director have exemption power which would, based on the selection system, make an athlete eligible to be chosen for the third spot.   

Possible? An Olympic long jump champion can skip Trials. Yes. Greg Rutherford reportedly suffered whiplash before Trials so he didn't go. The 29-year-old expects to be in Rio.

Jamaica

What is the easiest way to qualify? Top 3 at trials, sort of. 

Other ways to qualify? If a medical exemption has been given to someone in an event, such as in Bolt's case, then an athlete from the top 3 can get bumped on a discretionary basis.

Are there any exemptions? Yes, illness or injury can earn a medical exemption.   

Possible? Usain Bolt is left off the team. Possible, but unlikely. One section of Jamaica's criteria says exempted athletes must be top 3 in the world, and Bolt is currently fourth. But let's be fair, they'll name him, Jamaica would riot if they didn't.

Kenya

What is the easiest way to qualify? Top 2 at Trials with or without the standard.

Other ways to qualify? Although it isn't published anywhere the third spot is usually decided upon by Kenyan officials. They added 800-metre Olympic champion David Rudisha after he finished third at Trials.

Are there any exemptions? One expert called the selection process for the marathon, one of Kenya's banner events, a "massively frustrating black hole." It appears entirely discretionary. For example, Visiline Jepkesho, and her marathon personal best of 2:24, was chosen over Mary Keitany, who has run a 2:18.

Possible? Kenya is all about the track events. The infield at Kenyan Trials looked like it hadn't been watered in years. They have only two entries in field events out of a team of roughly 50 (including reserves).

The track and field competition at the Rio Olympics spans August 12 to 21 with the men's 100-metre final set for the night of Sunday, Aug. 14.

As written above, Athletics Canada has since clarified their position on discretionary additions to the Canadian team.