The following document outlines the qualification criteria for athletes wishing to compete at the 2026 National Championships.

Junior/U23 Athlete Qualification Criteria:
The following criteria will be used to determine eligibility to National Championships*:
– Submitted an Expression of interest (EOI) prior to the 45-day submission deadline
– Must have a minimum of National Development Series 2 scores (1 Provincial Qualifier, 1 Regional Championship)
– Must have a minimum National Development Series points score of 450 (top 15 at the provincial level**, top 30 at regionals)
– A maximum of 3 National Development Series scores will be counted (1 Provincial, 2 Regional)
*Athletes with a World Ranking under 250 may bypass the entry criteria to race in Junior/U23 National Championships. If an athlete gains entry to Nationals in this manner, they will not be given a National Development Series Ranking. This is to allow access to National Championships to Junior/U23 athletes racing consistently beyond the scope of the National Series.

Senior Athlete Qualification Criteria:
Senior athletes will qualify for the National Championships in the following order
– Submitted an Expression of interest (EOI) prior to the 45-day submission deadline
– Athletes with a World Ranking within the top 250 will automatically be granted qualification
– Remaining positions on the start list will be allocated through roll-down based on the 2026 National Rankings.
– Athletes who do not hold a National Ranking may be considered for selection at the discretion of the Triathlon Canada High Performance Director (HPD), based on the strength of their season race résumé and subject to start list availability.

U23 Mixed Team Relay will be formed using the following process:
– Athletes wishing to compete in the Mixed Team Relay will submit an EOI prior to the 45-day submission deadline.
– All athletes who submit an EOI must also notify their home province of their interest in racing
– Provinces will form teams based on their internal selection processes
– Athletes who submit an EOI but are not selected to a provincial team may be eligible to form a composite team with athletes from other provinces.

Exemptions to Qualification Criteria
Exemptions to the eligibility criteria to attend National Championships may be considered under extenuating circumstances. Exemption requests must be approved and submitted by the athlete with support from their affiliated PSO. The submission must include a valid reason for being unable to compete in a required qualification event. In the event of an illness or injury, submission of a medical certificate is advised. Submissions must be received by Triathlon Canada’s High-Performance Director a minimum of 2-weeks prior to the qualifying race unless the request is related to sudden illness or cancellation of a qualifying race. Exemption requests received more than 1-week after the required qualifying event, regardless of the circumstances, will not be considered.

To read the full Qualification Criteria, please click HERE or on the Learn More graphic below.