UK Athletics announced the athletes nominated to its 2026/27 Olympic World Class Programme on 23 October, naming 62 athletes on the pathway to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and beyond. The programme is funded by UK Sport through The National Lottery, and all nominations remain subject to ratification by UK Sport and a signed athlete agreement with UK Athletics.
The largest group is the Olympic Podium tier, which has 21 athletes. It includes Dina Asher-Smith, Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Josh Kerr, Keely Hodgkinson, Laura Muir, Jake Wightman, Zharnel Hughes and Amy Hunt. A further 13 athletes sit on Olympic Podium Potential, the tier for those regarded as having medal capability in the longer term.
There are also 13 athletes on the Olympic Relay list and one on Olympic Relay Confirmation. The Olympic Confirmation tier numbers 14 athletes, ten of whom are new to the programme, while a separate Relay Support Package has gone to one athlete, who is also new. That award is targeted at relay athletes and does not include an Athlete Performance Award.
Athletes on the programme can receive an Athlete Performance Award to help cover living and sporting costs, alongside competition opportunities, training camps and multidisciplinary support from UK Athletics' performance, sports science and medical teams. The roster as published lists 63 names, one more than the headline figure, a discrepancy that appears to reflect the separately categorised Relay Support Package.
Paula Dunn, UK Athletics' Performance Director, said that selection to the programme "recognises both current achievement and future potential". With the 2027 season approaching and the Diamond League calendar already published, the list sets out who the governing body expects to carry British medal hopes towards Los Angeles.