Competition at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Nanjing 25 (© World Athletics 
Dan Vernon)
The qualification systems for three 2026 World Athletics Series events have been published, following their approval by the World Athletics Council in Tokyo:
• World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26 (20-22 March 2026)
• World Athletics Relays Gaborone 26 (2-3 May 2026)
• World Athletics U20 Championships Oregon 26 (5-9 August 2026)
The qualification window for the World Indoor Championships in Kujawy Pomorze, Poland, runs from 1 November 2025 to 8 March 2026, with qualification based on entry standards and top indoor performance lists.
Individual athletes (except for combined events) can qualify in one of three ways:
• By achieving the entry standard within the qualification period
• By World Indoor Tour wild card
• By virtue of their position in the top performances list
A Road to Kujawy Pomorze list will be published every week on the World Athletics website, starting from 1 December 2025.
Full WIC Kujawy Pomorze 26 qualification system and entry standards
The top eight teams in the relay events at the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25 automatically qualified for the World Athletics Relays in Gaborone, Botswana. The remaining spots will be filled via top lists from 1 January 2025 to 5 April 2026, with host nation Botswana automatically entered in all events. A maximum of 24 teams will be entered in each event. In the mixed 4x100m, all 24 teams will be selected from top lists.
The World Relays in Gaborone will be the main qualification event for relay events at the 2026 World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest and the 2027 World Athletics Championships in Beijing. The top six teams in the mixed 4x100m and mixed 4x400m in Gaborone qualify for Budapest, while the top 12 teams in every event in Gaborone qualify for Beijing.
Full WRE Gaborone 26 qualification system
For the World U20 Championships in Oregon, USA, the qualification system is solely based on entry standards, with a qualification period running from 1 October 2025 to 26 July 2026. The event will feature the addition of the mixed 4x100m and the 5000m race walk, which will replace the 10,000m race walk.
Full WU20 Oregon 26 qualification system and entry standards
