Junior Olympics

Junior Olympic Track and Field

• Per USATF Rule 300.1(c) Athletes must be at least seven (7) years of age on December 31 of the current year to compete at the Youth Athletics or Junior Olympic National Championship. Athletes under seven (7) years of age can compete at the Association and Region Championships.
• Advancement to the National Junior Olympic Championship shall be by Association Championship to Regional Championship to National Junior Olympic Championship.

USATF Georgia Association Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships

• The Association Championships (sometimes referred to as the "state" championships) comprise youth athletes from all over Georgia who are members of USATF.
• Requirement: USATF age-verified membership.
• Qualifying standards: No qualification needed, no qualifying times needed.
• Meet held mid-June at a location in Georgia.

The following USATF meets have qualifying standards for entry per USATF Rule 306.2.

USATF Region 4 Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships

• The Region 4 Championships comprise youth athletes from Georgia, Florida and South Carolina Associations who qualified by advancing from their respective Association Championships. The meet location rotates from year-to-year through the Associations in the Region.
• Typically, the Top 8 individuals and top 5 relay teams advance from Association Championships. But these numbers may be adjusted by the Association chairs and Regional coordinator respectively for the purpose of accommodating their local situations.
• Meet held at the beginning of July in Georgia, Florida or South Carolina.

USATF National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships

• The National Championships comprise youth athletes from all over the United States who qualified by advancing from their respective Region Championships.
• USATF Rule 306.2(g) Advancement to the National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championship shall be by Association Championship to Regional Championship to National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championship.
• USATF Rule 306.2(d) Track and field shall advance five (5) individuals and five (5) relay teams from each Regional to National. These shall be the top five (5) finishers in each event. The Combined Events shall advance the top two (2) placed individuals and any others who meet the performance standard at the Regional Championship. The performance standard for a Combined Event is the average of the 8th place in the last three National Junior Olympic Championships. The number of qualifiers from Regional meets is fixed and no alternates may advance. The host Association shall qualify a like number.
  • ​Note: In 2025 the National Junior Olympic Championships will be held in Savannah, GA.
    • Historically, the host association (Georgia in this case) becomes Region 16 and advances qualifiers straight from the Association Championships to the National Championships without having to compete in the Region 4 Championships. That is what the phrase "the host Association shall qualify a like number" signifies.
    • However, as of early May 2025 the National Office of USATF has not yet given the Region 16 designation to the Georgia Association. Our National Office liaison is working on our behalf to determine why. This means as of now athletes in the Georgia Association will need to compete in the Region 4 Championships to advance to the National Championships.
• Meet held at the end of July.

Junior Olympic Cross Country

USATF Georgia Association Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships

• The Association Championships (sometimes referred to as the "state" championships) comprise youth athletes from all over Georgia who are members of USATF.
• Requirement: USATF age-verified membership.
• Qualifying standards: No qualification needed, no qualifying times needed.
• Meet held early November at a location in Georgia.

The following USATF meets have qualifying standards for entry per USATF Rule 306.3.

USATF Region 4 Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships

• The Region 4 Championships comprise youth athletes from Georgia, Florida and South Carolina Associations who qualified by advancing from their respective Association Championships. The meet location rotates from year-to-year through the Associations in the Region.
• Typically, the Top 30 individuals and top 5 teams advance from Association Championships. But, per USATF Rule 306.3(a), these numbers may be adjusted by the Association chair and Regional coordinator respectively for the purpose of accommodating their local situations. The normal is Top 30 / Top 5, but Region Coordinator has discretion to change qualifiers based on Association participation (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina).
• Meet held before Thanksgiving in Georgia, Florida or South Carolina.

USATF National Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships

• The National Championships comprise youth athletes from all over the United States who qualified by advancing from their respective Region Championships.
• USATF Rule 306.3(d) Advancement to the National Junior Olympic Cross Country Championship shall be by Association Championship to Regional Championship to National Junior Olympic Cross Country Championship. Qualifiers for the National Championship shall be the top 30 individuals by age division and the top five (5) scoring teams.
• USATF Rule 306.3(e) The number of qualifiers from Regional meets is fixed and no alternates may advance. Individuals finishing in the top 30 places and who are also members of the qualifying teams are not displaced so that additional finishers beyond thirtieth may not advance. Any team may advance if it has five or more individuals placing in the top 30 in the Regional meet. No team finishing beyond fifth place may advance based solely upon any of the first five teams' choosing not to advance.
• Meet held early December.