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The Olympics can only accommodate some of the best athletes in the world. Leaving out many from across the globe. read more
 "Olympics may not always have the best sportspersons competing")
Australia's Emma Mckeon in action during the women's 100m freestyle at the Fukuoka 2023 World Aquatics Championships. Reuters
Swimming is one of the oldest Olympic sports having featured at every modern Games since Athens 1896. The upcoming edition, in Paris, will see 852 athletes vying for medals at the Paris La Défense Arena.
Swimming first appeared on the Olympic programme at Athens in 1896. Women’s competitions were added in 1912 for the Stockholm Games, where female swimmers competed in just two events.
Highlighting the large strides made, at the 2024 Paris Olympics, women and men will be eligible to compete in the exact same programmes, as was the case at Tokyo 2020.
Even with 852 athletes set to commence in Paris for a chance at glory, they may not be the best athletes in the world. Why? Because of the qualification rules.
Who will qualify in swimming at Paris Olympics?
852 athletes will compete in swimming at the Paris Olympics with a maximum of 26 quotas for men and women each available to each National Olympic Committee (NOC).
For both the men’s and women’s competitions, each NOC will be eligible to nominate a maximum of two athletes per individual event and one relay team per relay event.
There’s a four point order of priority for Olympic qualification: those that meet the Olympic Qualification Time (OQT), relay athletes, universality places and invited athletes who meet Olympic Consideration Time.
Swimmers who achieve the OQT in a particular event will immediately qualify for the event in Paris, provided the maximum quota per event for their NOC has not been exceeded. Each country can enter two athletes in an event, only if they’ve achieved the OQT.
There are instances where multiple athletes meet the OQT but come from the same country and the third and below are ruled out as a result.
For instance, the OQT for the women’s 100m freestyle was set at 53.61 seconds. Six Aussie swimmers - Bronte Campbell (53.30), Cate Campbell (53.20), Meg Harris (52.59), Shayna Jack (52.60), Emma McKeon (52.52) and Mollie O’Callaghan (52.16) - had better seed time going into the trials in Brisbane.
With nine golds among 21 medals, Australia claimed their biggest Olympic swimming haul at the Tokyo Games, finishing a close second to the United States (11 golds, 30 medals). Three years on, the Australians are aiming higher, with a contingent of formidable women again leading the way. Except, not all the best in the worlds will be making the trip to France.
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