Squash will make its first Olympic appearance in Los Angeles 2028, but who will make the 16-player men’s and women’s draws ???
When squash – and other new sports – were confirmed for LA 2028, the competition consisted of men and women’s 32-player events. That’s since been reduced – for all the new individual sports – to 16-player draws, so there has been intense speculation as to who will make the draws, and how.
Well now we know! The IOC, WSF and PSA has revealed the qualification system (shown in full below our quick summary)
Who makes up the 16 players ???
There are five routes to the selected sixteen (we’ll try to explain one draw, the same applies to men or women)
1 ) National Associations
Two (or Three) National Associations will receive a quota of Two players, all others will receive one.
This doesn’t seem to be part of the 16 qualifiers, it probably just sets the maximum that two or three countries (Egypt + ??) can have.
2 ) Five players from Continental games (5)
(Presumably the winners) of the Asian Games, African Games, European Games, Pan-American Games and Pacific Games, all being held from Sep 2026 to Aug 2027.
(Squash hasn’t been in the European Games before, so presumably it’s a shoe-in for 2027)
3 ) Host Nation (1)
The host nation (USA) will receive at least one player.
(they may well win the Pan-American games, so that could make two)
4 ) World Rankings (9)
Eight players will qualify based on their World Ranking, plus one “universality” place.
(it’s not the top eight, you’ll probably have to go quite a way down to find unique countries, and “universitality” probably means a lesser-known squash nation)
5 ) Qualifying Competition (1)
The final place will go to the winner of a qualifying event to be held in June 2028.
(but presumably you can’t enter if your nation has already filled its ‘quota’)
Qualification Summary
Continental Games winners (5), Host Nation (1), World Rankings (9), Qualifying (1) are the 16 qualifiers.
Subject to some restrictions in the small print about how many can come from one country.
WSF Release : Olympic Qualification System announced for squash at LA28 Olympic Games
The Olympic Qualification System (OQS) for the squash competition at the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad, to be held July 15-24 2028, has been announced following approval by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board meeting at its meeting on 01 February in Milan, Italy.
The OQS will consist of five possible routes to qualification, subject to conditions: Continental Games, Host Country Quota, World Rankings, Universality Places, and a Final World Qualifying Tournament.
In its Olympic debut in Los Angeles, the squash competition will see 16-athlete draws for men’s singles and women’s singles, staged at the Comcast Squash Center at Universal Studios.
The OQS was developed by World Squash and the Professional Squash Association (PSA) and aims to achieve an optimal balance between inclusion of the best athletes and representation of as many National Olympic Committees (NOCs) as possible across the 16 athletes in each competition. A minimum of two and a maximum of three NOCs will receive a quota of two athletes per gender, subject to meeting conditions, with all others receiving a quota of one.
Five athletes per gender will qualify via their respective Continental Games: The Asian Games (Nagoya, Japan, September 19-04 October 2026); the African Games (Cairo, Egypt, January 20-07 February 2027); the European Games (Istanbul, Turkey, June 2027); the Pan-American Games (Lima, Peru, July 16-01 August 2027); and the Pacific Games (Pirae, Tahiti, July 24-08 August 2027).
As host, the USA, via the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee, receives a quota of at least one athlete per gender, subject to conditions.
A further eight athletes per gender will qualify based on their PSA World Ranking and one universality place per gender will be available to eligible NOCs.
The remaining one quota place per gender will be decided via a 24-athlete final qualification tournament, to be held June 06-10 2028.
World Squash President Zena Wooldridge said: “We are very conscious of the huge suspense and anticipation amongst athletes, coaches and federations regarding squash’s Olympic Qualification System, which reflects the excitement across the whole squash community for the sport’s Olympic debut.
“For many, the Olympic dream will feel one step closer today, as squash stars around the world can begin plotting a course for a place in sporting history in Los Angeles
“On behalf of World Squash and our PSA colleagues, I would like to express my thanks to our IOC colleagues for their support during this process. We are looking forward to putting squash on sport’s greatest stage.”
