Jyothi Yarraji (ANI Photo) The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has set very strict qualification rules for the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, making it clear that only the best athletes will make it. With the athletics program downsized and each country able to send only 32 athletes, the AFI raised the standards so high that competitors in 17 events must equal or even break existing national records to be selected.Several big names will be challenged. In men’s sprints and track events such as the 100m, 400m, 1500m and 110m hurdles, the qualifying times are actually faster than the current Indian records. Even national record holders like Animesh Kujur and Tejas Shirse fall short of the required marks. On the women’s side, Asian Games medalist Jyothi Yarraji has to improve her own national record in the 100m hurdles after returning from injury, while Vithya Ramraj has to go faster than PT Usha’s long-standing 400m hurdles record, which she equaled earlier.Key Qualification Standards (Selected Events)
- Men’s 100m: 10.16s
- Women’s 100m: 11.17s
- Men’s 400m: 44.96s
- Women’s 400m: 51.36s
- Men’s 1500m: 3:30.82
- Women’s 1500m: 4:05.09
- Men’s 5000m: 13:19.64
- Women’s 5000m: 14:56.60
- Men’s 10,000m: 27:39.03
- Women’s 10,000m: 31:14.14
There is breathing room in field events like the men’s javelin. The qualifying mark is 82.61 meters, a distance already covered by Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra and others.The AFI has announced that the Federation Cup in Ranchi from May 22 to 25 will serve as the final selection trials. Athletes who have already met the standard must also compete. However, voters can make exceptions in special cases and still select athletes considered to be strong contenders for medals.Unlike the Olympics, each country sets its own standards for the Commonwealth Games. India will be looking to improve on their eight athletics medals from the 2022 Games when the event is held from July 23 to August 2, 2026.
