After an exceptional 2023 season across Canada, Athletics Canada today announced the programming of 11 events spread across six provinces which will make up the 2024 national athletics tour.
The Tour, inaugurated in 2022, is a series of high-performance athletics competitions taking place across the country.
The purpose of the Tour is to provide meaningful competitive opportunities for athletes domestically, to host events in which Canadian athletes can earn valuable world ranking points by helping them qualify for the World Championships and Olympic Games, and to help develop athletes for future national team representation.
“We are excited to announce the 2024 Athletics Canada National Track and Field Tour,” said Chris Winter, Director of National Programs and Safe Sport at Athletics Canada. “This series of World Athletics ranked competitions provides a great opportunity for the stars of our sport to showcase their talents while competing alongside and inspiring our next generation of athletes.”
This year’s tour will begin in January with the Saskatchewan Knights of Columbus Indoor Games in Saskatoon, before breaking until the spring and resuming with the Pacific Distance Carnival and Canadian 10,000m Championships in Burnaby in mid-May. From there, the Tour will continue with competitions three through eleven and is expected to run through the end of June, giving athletes multiple opportunities to meet performance standards and improve their world rankings ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Trials Bell 2024 in Montreal from June 26 to 30, 2024.
2024 Upgrades
2024 will see several competitions move up a category in the world rankings with the Harry Jerome Track Classic joining the Edmonton Athletics Invitational at the World Athletics Continental Tour – Silver level, while the Royal City Inferno Track & Field Festival and The Athletics Classic of Montreal have advanced to the Bronze level of the World Continental Athletics Circuit. Additionally, the Bob Vigars Classic has been upgraded to the World Athletics Continental Tour – Challenger level. What does that mean? This means these events will offer increased levels of prize money and more intense competition. In turn, World Athletics will award increased world ranking points – which is a good thing as our athletes work to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
“We cannot thank our event directors enough who are selflessly dedicated to providing world-class competition opportunities here in Canada,” said Winter. “Without these competitions, our Canadian athletes would be at a huge competitive disadvantage and would be forced to seek competitive opportunities abroad, resulting in significant financial costs as well as considerable travel, depriving them of important training while They are aiming for peak performances in Paris.
New for 2024
Saint John, New Brunswick joins the national track and field tour next June when it hosts the Saint John Classic.
| Date | Meet | Location | World Athletics Category |
| January 26, 2024 | Saskatchewan Knights of Columbus Indoor Games | Saskatoon, Saskatchewan | National permit meeting (category “E”) |
| May 11, 2024 | Pacific Distance Carnival and Canadian 10,000m Championships | Burnaby, British Columbia | National permit meeting (category “E”) |
| May 26, 2024 | Bob Vigars Classic | London, Ontario | WACT – Challenger Series (Category “D”)* |
| May 29, 2024 | Royal City Inferno Athletics Festival | Guelph, Ontario | WACT – Bronze (Category “C”)* |
| June 2, 2024 | Johnny Loaring Classic | Windsor, Ontario | WACT – Challenger Series (Category “D”) |
| June 8, 2024 | Classic of Saint-Jean | Saint John, New Brunswick | National permit meeting (category “E”) |
| June 12, 2024 | Victoria Classic Track | Victoria, British Columbia | National permit meeting (category “E”) |
| June 13, 2024 | Edmonton Track and Field Invitational Tournament | Edmonton, Alberta | WACT – Silver (Category “B”) |
| June 15, 2024 | Harry Jerome Track Classic | Burnaby, British Columbia | WACT – Silver (Category “B”)* |
| June 16, 2024 | CALTAF Classic Track | Calgary, Alberta | National permit meeting (category “E”) |
| June 21, 2024 | The Montreal Athletics Classic | Montreal, Quebec | WACT – Bronze (Category “C”)* |
*Improved World Athletics Category from 2023
You can find information about each specific meetup on their respective event pages here.
Dream athletics
The 2023 season was one for the record books, with 16 new Canadian records set during a National Track and Field Tour event.
With world ranking points and more than $250,000 on the line, the competition was tough. Three of Canada’s gold medalists at the 2023 World Athletics Championships competed on the 2023 National Athletics Tour: Camryn Rogers, Marco Arop and Pierce LePage.
