All athletes eligible to represent the United States must:
- Be a U.S. citizen OR
- Be a U.S. national – someone who has resided in the U.S. for three consecutive years and has not competed for their country of citizenship in the prior year. Team USA eligible athletes must not have competed for their country of citizenship in the prior year. Athletes who choose to be recognized as nationals who have competed for their country of citizenship in the last year may get dispensation by obtaining a letter from the National Federation of their home country allowing competition as a USA athlete.
1. World Podium: Any athlete who places 1-3 in their age group at a world championship will automatically qualify for the respective world championship the following year.
2. National Championships: The remaining world championship slots are allocated to athletes who compete in the respective national championship and finish in a qualifying place (see below for number of slots allocated and the roll down process per event).
3. Rankings: If slots are still available, any athlete who finished in the top 20 of their respective age group in the annual year end (12/31) USA Triathlon National Rankings and did not accept slots at National Championships are eligible to claim a spot on Team USA. The highest ranked athletes will have first priority to accept a Team USA spot, followed by 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc., (through 20th). Previously, this qualification pathway was only available to the first two highest-ranked athletes out of 20 in the National Rankings. Please understand that not all age groups’ will have slots available as the team slots may have already been filled.
***2022 Team Qualification was unique due to the cancellation/changes from COVID in 2021.**
For duathletes to be ranked this season, you will need to complete two sanctioned duathlons between January 1 and December 31, of the respective year. If questions, visit USA Triathlon Rankings here.
For triathletes to be ranked this season, you will need to complete three sanctioned triathlons between January 1 and December 31, of the respective year. If questions, visit USA Triathlon Rankings here.
Whatever your age is as of December 31, during the year in which you want to compete for Team USA will be the age-group used to determine your Team USA qualification status.
If an athlete "ages up" into another age group for the year of the World Championship, a separate set of results will be issued accounting for those athletes who aged up and Team USA slots will be awarded based on these results. Therefore, their finish time will be compared to those athletes in the older age group.
For example, if John Doe is going to be 49 years old by Dec. 31, 2021, he will age-up up into the 50-54 age group for the 2022 World Championships since he will be 50 years old by Dec. 31, 2022.
Thus, for Team USA qualifying purposes, his time at the qualification event will be compared to the men currently in the 50-54 age group.
We will post the age-up results at the awards ceremony of Toyota Age Group Nationals. At other national championships, age-up results will not be posted, and athletes will claim their spot through email within 2-3 weeks post-event. If you believe that you have qualified, please ensure that you have not unsubscribed from our communication. Qualification emails are sent to the email address that you used when registering for the qualification event. You will have only a few days to claim your slot once you receive the qualification email. If you do not receive your e-mail please let us know at teamusa@usatriathlon.org.
Having a fair and effective anti-doping program is vital to ensure that the rights of clean athletes and the integrity of competition are upheld. USA Triathlon is opposed to the practice of doping in sport and fully supports and complies with the policies, protocols, and rules set forth by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) as the independent, non-profit anti-doping organization in the U.S. Guided by their mission to preserve the integrity of competition, inspire true sport, and protect the rights of U.S. athletes, USADA is charged with implementing a comprehensive anti-doping program for all Olympic, Paralympic, Pan American, and Para Pan American sport National Governing Bodies, their athletes, and events. USADA's scope of responsibility includes:
- Education for athlete and athlete support personnel
- Drug reference resources
- In-competition and out-of competition testing
- Results management processes
All members of Team USA are expected to abide by USADA policies, protocols and rules. In-depth information and resources can be found here on the USA Triathlon website.