The International Cycling Union (UCI) has announced the qualification system for the road race and time trial for the upcoming London Olympic Games in 2012. The regulations outline the method by which each National Olympic Committee (NOC) has places allocated in both the men’s and women’s races.
The maximum number of riders for each NOC will be 5 for the men and 4 for the women, according to UCI ranking; there is also provision for a possible extra one rider in each gender category, to be decided by other criteria. These numbers include those to be entered in the individual time trial and the maximum size for each peloton will be 145 for the men and 67 for the women – the same size as those in Beijing during the last Games.
In the men’s race, the top ten nations in the UCI World Ranking will each be allocated 5 riders, while the 11th to 15th nations will be allocated 4. The other places are to be allocated according to nations’ positions in the UCI’s Continental Rankings. Additional places will be awarded to the nation of the top two riders in each of the African, American and Asian Championships.
As women do not have separate World and Continental rankings, their places will be allocated according to each nation’s position in the UCI Rankings. The top 5 nations will be awarded 4 places (which marks a change for the women’s race where top nations were previously limited to 3), nations in positions 6 to 13 will be allocated 3 places, and positions 14 to 23 will be allocated 2 places. Like the men, an extra place will be awarded to the nation of the winner of the African, American and Asian Championships.
One of the conditions attached to the allocations is that no nation may field more riders than it has in the top of the rankings. For example, if Luxembourg were to finish in the top five of the World Rankings through Fränk and Andy Schleck, the country would only receive two places in the road race, instead of five, if they were the only riders in the rankings.
For the men’s time trial events, each of the top 15 nations in the World Rankings will be allocated 1 place, with the top nations from each of the Continental Rankings allocated further places. In addition, the nations of the top ten riders in the 2011 World Championship time trial will each be awarded a place.
Similarly, for the women’s time trial, the top 15 nations in the UCI Rankings will be allocated a place, with the nations of the top ten in the 2011 World Championship time trial getting an extra place.
All rankings, UCI, World and Continental, will be determined on October 18th 2011, at the end of the road season. The deadline for entry forms to be received by the London 2012 Organising Committee is July 9th 2012.