Throughout the year, the World Selection Committee evaluates athletes and determines whether they are qualified to compete at the Olympic Games. The members of the World Selection Committee are experts in their sport and they meet with athletes from all countries to discuss their eligibility. The members make recommendations to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for athletes to be selected to represent their countries.
Athletes who meet the criteria are awarded a spot on the team and are guaranteed a spot at the Olympics. If they do not meet the criteria, they are disqualified from competing for four years.
The world selection committee consists of five people, each representing a different country. They meet three times a year to evaluate the shortlist and make recommendations to the IOC.
The committee also consists of subcommittees. The women’s subcommittee includes incoming Jewish Agency Board of Governors chairman Mark Wilf and WZO chairman Yaakov Hagoel. It has not yet selected a woman to compete in the World Team Selection Camp.
The men’s selection committee compiled senior men’s and junior men’s national teams. Toby Liang was not selected to the team. He had been on the shortlist for selection as a member of the senior development team. He competed at the nationals in June and placed second in the all-around. He also competed in international competition in Paris in July. His D-score was considered one of the highest for his age group.
The women’s selection committee has 11 women competing for five team spots. They will compete at the World Championships in England in October. They will also be competing in the Paris World Challenge Cup. The fourth or fifth member of the team will be named an alternate and will compete in the three-up, three-count team final.
The World Selection Committee also has a physical fitness test. All athletes on the shortlist must pass the physical fitness test before they can compete at the Olympics. The physical fitness test can be waived for athletes who have a medical condition. The shortlist is sent to the Secretary of the IOC for review and approval. If an athlete does not pass the physical fitness test, they are disqualified from competing in Worlds for four years.
The World Selection Committee meets three times a year to make recommendations to the IOC. The selection camp will begin Friday, October 21. It is expected that the camp will be live streamed. The first day will feature the all-around competition. The next day, gymnasts will compete in two events. The first day’s results will determine which athletes qualify for the six-woman traveling team.
The selection camp also will select one woman to be a traveling alternate. She will compete for one team spot.
Three gymnasts competed as collegiate gymnasts between the two world championships. These gymnasts included Konnor McClain, who was second in the all-around competition. He was also a national champion on balance beam. The other two were Jade Carey, who placed fifth at nationals, and Jordan Chiles, who placed third.