OQS Budapest 2024 the ultimate stage: The pressure is on for Horigome, Worthington, and others
Some top names, including reigning Olympic champions Horigome Yuto in men's street skateboarding and Charlotte Worthington in women's BMX freestyle, will need to produce big performances at the final Olympic Qualifier Series stage in Budapest in order to obtain a Paris 2024 quota spot.
When the 460 or so athletes involved in the Olympic Qualifier Series (OQS) stage in Budapest compete in the Hungarian capital from 20-23 June, one thing will be at the forefront of their minds: obtaining a Paris 2024 Olympic qualifying quota spot*.
The process is two-, and sometimes three-, fold: in all 12 events at OQS, Olympic quotas will be obtained based on an overall ranking of performances at both OQS stops in Shanghai and Budapest, with the addition of the Olympic World Skateboarding Ranking (OWSR) into the mix for skateboarders.
But, after the first stage last month in Shanghai, some big names are on the verge of missing out on making it to Paris if they don't do well enough in Budapest. It is the ultimate stage to Paris 2024, and Olympics.com takes a look at some of the athletes under pressure in Hungary.
*As National Olympic Committees have the exclusive authority for the representation of their respective teams at the Olympic Games, athletes' participation at Paris 2024 depends on their NOC selecting them to represent their delegation. Click here to view the qualification system for each sport.
OQS Budapest: Olympic champions on the brink
Horigome Yuto, who won gold in the men's skateboarding street event on home soil in Tokyo three years ago, finds himself in 11th in the rankings after taking the OWSR and Shanghai into account.
But, more importantly, he is the fifth Japanese man on the list – and each National Olympic Committee is limited to a maximum of three skateboarders in each event.
What it means is not only does Horigome, who suffered a first-round exit in Shanghai and didn't even make the semi-finals, need a strong performance in Budapest, he also needs the other Japanese skaters ahead of him to drop enough places to allow him into the top three among his compatriots.
That could be the tougher ask than simply doing well.
There's a similar problem facing Horigome's compatriot and another Tokyo champion in Nishiya Momiji, who sits as the third Japanese woman after Shanghai. While as it stands she would obtain a quota based on her ranking, she needs to stay ahead of a strong chasing pack including Nakayama Funa, the bronze medallist in Tokyo, and world champion Oda Yumeka.
Another reigning Olympic champion who needs a strong showing in Budapest is Charlotte Worthington, the women's BMX freestyle winner in Tokyo.
The Brit finished down in 12th in Shanghai, and with only six quota spots available through the OQS, needs to make up multiple positions in Hungary.
Otherwise, her route to Paris will likely have to come through being selected by the British Olympic Association if the BOA obtains a quota spot from the 2022 or 2023 World Championships reallocation.
Another shot for those who missed OQS Shanghai
Thanks to the quirk of the qualification rankings in skateboarding including the OWSR, a few skateboarders who will be competing in Budapest missed the first stage of OQS in Shanghai.
That list includes the likes of Great Britain's Sky Brown, who withdrew from Shanghai through injury with a medial collateral ligament tear, and France's Aurélien Giraud and Vincent Milou, who both cited concerns with their competition fitness.
After Shanghai, Giraud and Milou are ninth and 23rd respectively in the men's street standings, while Brown is 11th in the women's park rankings. Just the top 20 will qualify in each event, with a maximum of three skateboarders per NOC per event, meaning Milou especially will need to produce under pressure.
Final chance for other Olympic and world medallists
Then there's the Olympic and world medallists who have yet to confirm their spots in Paris. Among them are BMX freestyler Daniel Dhers of Venezuela, who is in a unique position.
See, Dhers doesn't just compete – he also coaches the top-ranked People's Republic of China women's team, which swept the top three places in Shanghai. However, Dhers himself was down in 10th and needs to pull himself up the standings.
In sport climbing, German world lead bronze medallist Alexander Megos finds himself in 12th in the men's Boulder and Lead event after Shanghai, while Mickaël Mawem's hopes of a home Games are hanging by a thread after the Bouldering world champion didn't make it past the first round in Shanghai.
How to watch all the Olympic Qualifier Series action from Budapest
The action from Budapest will be streamed live, for free, and without subscription to a worldwide audience on Olympic Channel via Olympics.com and the official Olympics app for Paris 2024.
You can also catch up on the latest news, features, reports and updates from the ground with daily articles on Olympics.com.
