Skeleton at the 2018 Winter Olympics – Qualification


The following were the criteria, rules, and standings for qualification for the Skeleton competitions at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Qualification rules

A maximum of 50 quota spots were available to athletes to compete at the games. A maximum 30 men and 20 women could qualify. The qualification was based on the combined rankings of 14 January 2018. Competitors had to have competed in five different races on three different tracks during the 2016/17 season or 2017/18 season. Males had to be in the top 60 of the world rankings, while women needed to be in the top 45, after eliminating non-quota-earning competitors from countries that have earned their maximum quota. Each continent and the hosts were allowed to enter a competitor provided they meet the above standard. If any of these automatic places had gone unfilled, they were reallocated to unrepresented countries with qualified competitors in order of ranking. Thirty men were allowed to compete. Twenty women were allowed to compete.

Qualification timeline

Races from October 15, 2017 until January 14, 2018 applied to qualification for the Olympics. In general this meant that the Olympic field is established by using the first seven world cup races of the 2017-18 season, but also includes results from Intercontinental, Europe, and America cup races. Four competitors were then allocated in both competitions, first for the host, and then for continents not previously represented. If a nation refused a quota it was reallocated. Unused or reallocated spots were filled on January 19, 2018 by nations not previously entered.

Quota allocation

The following summary is a break down of Olympic qualification based on the IBSF rankings and adjustments, following reallocation. Numbers beside the nation indicate the rank of the sled that establishes the NOC's number of qualifiers.

Final summary

Men

Final rankings by nation.
Sleds qualifiedCountriesAthletes totalNation
326 7
14
23
2612 4
9
16
20
22
44
45
11111 11
18
27
31
34
39
42
43
46
60
61
79
99
301930

  1. Switzerland and Austria declined one quota each. Norway and Israel accepted reallocations.
  2. Qualified as continental representative for Africa.
  3. Olympic Athletes From Russia were permitted to enter only 2 spots and excluded Alexander Tretiatov. This spot was reallocated to Jamaica.

    Women

Final rankings by nation.
Sleds qualifiedCountriesAthletes totalNation
326 7
8
224 13
16
18
22
11010 9
11
12
14
15
20
32
36
41
71
201220

  1. Nethelands accepted one quota place but declined the second quota which was accepted by Switzerland
  2. Australia qualified as a continental representative.
  3. South Korea qualified as the host.
  4. Nigeria qualified as a continental representative through the application of IBSF rule 4.1.
  5. Olympic Athletes From Russia were not permitted to enter any women. These spots were reallocated to Romania and Japan.