There are 43 events at the 2015 IAAF World Championships in Beijing, China this year. Which means there are 43 opportunities to make Team USA. Some teams are easier than others to make, while some teams are down right not even fair. Here are the five hardest Team USA teams to make this year...
 

5) MEN’S 1500M

By far the hardest men’s distance team to make, mainly due to the type of race the 1500 becomes at most US Championships. In the steeplechase/5k/10k the fields tend to shrink down to 3-4 athletes in contention with 200m to go. The 1500 is another story, where you can have 8-10 athletes within 5 meters of each other with 200m to go. Thus, positioning, race tactics, and raw speed come into play which can make or break being top 3. When a race comes down to 200m, 1500 PBs are thrown out the window and anything can happen. History shows just how close you can be to making Team USA just to come up short.
 

2011 3rd to 7th separated by 0.86 sec

2012 3rd to 7th separated by 1.13 sec

2013 3rd to 7th separated by 0.62 sec

2014 3rd to 7th separated by 1.04 sec
 

Top 8 Finishers at 2012 Olympics/2013 Worlds:

Matthew Centrowitz (2nd at 2013 Worlds, 4th at 2012 Olympics)

Leo Manzano (2nd at 2012 Olympics)
 

4) WOMEN’S 100M

American women sprinters dominate on the international scene, so it makes sense that the women’s 100 is one of the hardest events to qualify in. The reason is because of the quanity of American women capable of running well on the international stage. It is possible that the 2015 USA Final could have 6 of the 8 lanes with an athlete who has finished in the top 8 at the 2012 Olympics or 2013 Worlds. Also, the women’s 100 has no clear favorite, so going from projected 1st to finishing 6th won’t be uncommon.
 

Top 8 Finishers at 2012 Olympics/2013 Worlds:

Carmelita Jeter (3rd at 2013 Worlds, 2nd at 2012 Olympics)

English Gardner (4th at 2013 Worlds)

Alexandria Anderson (7th at 2013 Worlds)

Octavious Freeman (8th at 2013 Worlds)

Allyson Felix (5th at 2012 Olympics)

Tianna Bartoletta (4th at 2012 Olympics)
 

3) MEN’S 100M

At the 2015 IAAF World Relays, we saw Team USA’s 4x100 take down Team Jamaica in dominating fashion. Those four athletes, Rodgers, Gatlin, Gay, and Bailey have solidified themselves as the four best 100m runners in the US for a few years now. It is safe to say that these four athletes are a step ahead of all the other 100m US contenders, which makes finishing top 3 in this event extremely hard. Even someone like Trayvon Bromell, who has been running out of his mind at Baylor, has yet to show the World if he can join the current Fab Four of US sprinting.
 

Top 8 Finishers at 2012 Olympics/2013 Worlds:

Justin Gatlin (2nd at 2013 Worlds, 3rd at 2012 Olympics)

Mike Rodgers (6th at 2013 Worlds)

Tyson Gay (4th at 2012 Olympics)

Ryan Bailey (5th at 2012 Olympics)
 

2) WOMEN’S 800M

The numbers will do the talking to show just how deep the US 800m scene is...

14 US Women have broken 2:00 since 2012:

1:57 Alysia Montano
1:57 Ajee Wilson
1:57 Brenda Martinez
1:59 Laura Roesler

1:59 Anna Willard

1:59 Molly Ludlow

1:59 Geena Lara

1:59 Alice Schmidt

1:59 Kate Grace

1:59 Mary Cain

1:59 Maggie Vessey

1:59 Phoebe Wright

1:59 Chanelle Price

1:59 Erica Moore
 

Top 8 Finishers at 2012 Olympics/2013 Worlds:

Alysia Montano (4th at 2013 Worlds, 5th at 2012 Olympics)

Brenda Martinez (3rd at 2013 Worlds)

Ajee Wilson (6th at 2013 Worlds)
 

1) WOMEN’S 100M HURDLES

USA = 100 Hurdle University. The past three years Track & Field News has ranked 6 Americans in the 100H Top 10 World Rankings. A total of 9 different US women were ranked and that is not even including Sharika Nelvis who dominated the collegiate scene last year. A combination of world class depth, world level success, and less than 13 seconds of running leaving no chance for error makes the 100 hurdles officially the hardest team to make.
 

Top 8 Finishers at 2012 Olympics/2013 Worlds:

Dawn Harper-Nelson (4th at 2013 Worlds, 2nd at 2012 Olympics)

Brianna Rollins (1st at 2013 Worlds)

Queen Harrison (5th at 2013 Worlds)

Kellie Wells (3rd at 2012 Olympics)

Lolo Jones (4th at 2012 Olympics)