Marathon qualifying standards for LA 2028 set the bar sky-high

For an elite athlete in any track and field discipline, the Olympics are the holy grail. It's where you have to be. Careers and race calendars are built around this four-year cycle. For marathoners, it's a real balancing act. Given how demanding the distance is, long-distance runners have no margin for error and can only afford a few races a year. At peak fitness, athletes often pick two marathons a year, one in spring and one in fall, to leave enough time to prepare and to get weather that favors fast times. And since November 10, every qualification rule for the 2028 Games is known. Athletes (and their agents) now have all the information. 2:05 for men, 2:22:20 for women. One quirk for the marathon: its qualification window had already opened on November 1.

Awkward timing, a shrinking field

First, it's hard not to question the timing of the announcement. True, World Athletics published the standards six weeks earlier than for the 2024 Games, but it came after a fall marathon season that was already almost over, with Sydney, Berlin, Chicago, Amsterdam and New York all done. For athletes who ran their best marathon in September or October, those times won't count. A bitter pill to swallow. The problem isn't new, though, and it has actually eased: for Paris 2024, the window also opened on November 1, and marathoners ran seven weeks blind, with no concrete target, until the standards were finally (and belatedly) published on December 20, 2022.

This time, the wait lasted only ten days. It all started on October 21. In an email sent to agents and representatives of professional athletes, revealed by the American outlet CITIUS Mag, World Athletics indicated that the qualification window for the 2028 Games would open on November 1. That date falls on the very day of the New York City Marathon, so every performance from that race counts toward qualification. The time standards may not be within reach there, given the course profile, but the Big Apple remains a key date on the calendar because athletes can bank a lot of ranking points. New York carries the highest World Athletics label, Platinum, and a top-5 finish there is equivalent to running under the standard. More on that below.

The memo contained other details too, such as the publication of the standards planned for December (they finally came earlier, on November 10) and the size of the marathon field, cut from 80 to 70 per race. That's a striking reduction at a time when depth and global standards in the marathon are climbing fast. With 70 starters, it would be the smallest Olympic men's marathon since Montreal in 1976, and the smallest women's since Sydney in 2000. Why impose an even lower cap when the marathon has never been so popular and the race is held outdoors on wide roads? We found a possible explanation: the IOC kept the athletics quota at 1,810 athletes, the same as Paris.

And for LA28, the program adds a new event, the mixed 4x100 m relay. World Athletics doesn't say where the marathon's 20 spots went, but room had to be found somewhere. Note too that the 70 spots are a target rather than a hard ceiling: in Paris, universality places pushed both races over quota. The cap makes sense for track events (eight lanes can only hold so many athletes), but on the road the decision makes much less sense. It penalizes athletes and deprives fans of a bigger show.

© CNOSF / KMSP

LA 2028 standards and the other ways to qualify

As in previous Olympic cycles, World Athletics has set up two routes to the LA28 Games, with a stated goal: 40% of athletes qualify through standards and 60% through the world rankings. If more athletes hit the standard than there are spots, only the fastest times are kept, and nobody goes through the rankings.

For the track distance events, the 10,000 m window runs from December 19, 2026 to June 18, 2028, and the 5,000 m window from June 19, 2027 to June 18, 2028. Here too, the level has gone up a notch. The men's 5,000 m has one of the biggest jumps in the whole program: 15 seconds faster than for Paris. To put it in perspective, only ten men in the world have gone under 12:50 in 2026. The best Frenchman of the season, Jimmy Gressier, stopped at 12:57 in Paris last June.

Faster, higher… and more weight on the rankings

The standards drop by 3:10 for men and 4:30 for women. That's a huge leap, but it mirrors a trend nobody can ignore. We may be living through the golden age of the marathon. For more than a decade, Eliud Kipchoge ruled the distance with an iron fist. He opened the way for a new generation of talents who are now pushing back the limits of the possible. Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha both ran under two hours in London this year. Behind them, the depth is staggering, with Jacob Kiplimo, John Korir and Benson and Amos Kipruto. But the progression is even more spectacular among the women. Ruth Chepngetich's record (still ratified despite her suspension) has wobbled several times, with Fotyen Tesfay's 2:10 debut and Tigst Assefa's astonishing 2:11 in Berlin. Behind them, the depth is just as remarkable, with Sifan Hassan, Joyciline Jepkosgei, Brigid Kosgei, Sharon Lokedi, Hellen Obiri...

The new split of qualifiers, moving from 50/50 to 40/60 in favor of the rankings, probably also reflects World Athletics' wish to reward consistency and strong placings in major races rather than a single dazzling time on a fast course. On how tough the standards are, the governing body justifies itself by explaining that in an Olympic year, marathons run 30 to 60 seconds faster than trends would predict.

No room for error for marathoners

Running under 2:05 or under 2:22:20 is the new target for athletes chasing the 2028 Games. But that entry ticket is reserved for the world's elite, the cream of the crop. In Great Britain, for example, no man in history has yet run under 2:05. In France, only Morhad Amdouni has done it, and no Frenchwoman has ever gone under 2:22:20. For most athletes, there is still a chance: the rankings. Their strategy will probably be to pick two prestigious Platinum Label marathons to score more ranking points. A good placing in a major race can be worth more than a good time in a smaller one.

With the window now open and fewer spots than for Paris 2024, athletes will have to choose their next races with great care. Less margin for error. And in the marathon, the script can be cruel. Only two dates circled in the year... and race-day weather can wipe out an entire career plan.

Another point worth stressing: the ranking cut-off date. March 19, 2028 falls before the big April marathons. Those counting on a spring 2028 marathon will only be fighting for the last 15 spots. That points to a spectacular 2027, with the level rising yet another notch. Starting with the Valencia Marathon, just a few weeks away.

With these new standards, World Athletics has set the bar at the level of the golden age the marathon is living through. For a handful of athletes, 2:05 and 2:22:20 will remain a realistic target. For everyone else, the road to Los Angeles will run through the rankings. A gripping chapter of marathon history opened on November 1. Eighteen months of chasing a dream time and a spot at the LA 2028 Olympics. Until then, every marathon will count, and so will every finishing place. And at the end of it, a historic start line with just 70 runners. The men's marathon will close the Games on July 30, 2028. Saving the best for last. You'll want to be there.