The race to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games began in 2014, with athletes from more than 60 nations winning places. There were 18 qualifying tournaments between June and December, with places in nine Olympic and 10 Paralympic sports up for grabs. In all, 64 countries have already confirmed their presence at the first editions of the Games to be staged in South America.

“It’s been a really exciting year as the first athletes and teams have won places at the Games,” said Melina Xanthopoulou, Rio 2016’s Sport Entries Manager. “It makes them and us here at the committee feel even closer to the Games, and it inspires everyone here to ensure we prepare the perfect conditions for the athletes to shine on their big days.”

Some of the highlights of 2014 included the USA men’s and women’s basketball teams winning their respective world championships to book their places in Rio. Meanwhile, the Indian men’s hockey team won gold at the Asian Games to ensure they will be represented in Brazil. In 5-a-side football, a Paralympic event played by visually impaired footballers, Argentina qualified despite losing to Brazil in the World Cup final, as the host nation already had their place guaranteed. In wheelchair rugby, Australia has also confirmed its place by winning the world championship.

Meanwhile, some sports have already started counting world ranking points that will be used to award places in Rio, or have entered periods in which qualifying standards can be recorded in competitions.

In total, 395 Olympic and 271 Paralympic places have been filled. Come 2016, there will be 10,500 Olympic and 4,350 Paralympic athletes competing for medals in Rio.

See below for an overview of the qualifying tournaments held in 2014:

Olympic Games

Basketball: After winning their respective world championships, the USA men’s and women’s teams are already through to the Rio 2016 Games. The men took the FIBA World Cup title in Madrid and shortly afterwards the women were victorious in Istanbul.

Kenneth Faried helped the USA qualify for Rio (Photo: Getty Images/Jonathan Daniel)

Football: The Colombia women’s team was the first side to qualify. They finished runners-up in the Copa América, held in Ecuador, losing out to Brazil, who were already guaranteed a place as the host country.

The Colombian team qualified for Rio 2016 as runners-up in the Copa America (Photo: Conmebol)

Handball: Norway triumphed at the Women’s European Championship, held in Hungary and Croatia, to confirm their place at the Rio 2016 Games, where they will be going for a third consecutive Olympic title.

Norway beat Spain in the Women's Handball European Championship to qualify for Rio 2016 (Foto: EHF/Uros Hocevar)

Equestrian:  The first Olympic sport to confirm qualifiers for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, equestrian awarded places across its three disciplines at the World Equestrian Games in Normandy, France. Four dressage teams (Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands and Australia), six eventing teams (Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, France, Australia and Ireland), and five jumping teams (Netherlands, France, United States, Germany and Sweden) booked their places.

The Netherlands jumping team qualified for Rio 2016 via the World Equestrian Games (Photo: FEI)

Hockey: The Asian Games hockey tournaments in Incheon, the Republic of Korea, saw the host nation's women's team and the Indian men qualify for Rio 2016.

The Republic of Korea women's team celebrate qualifying for Rio 2016 on home ground (Photo: Asian Hockey Federation)

Shooting: Of the 390 places up for grabs at Rio 2016, 75 have already been filled, with 64 qualifications at the world championships in Spain, and 11 at the Americas Shooting Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico. China has the most places so far (nine).

The World Shooting Championships provided 64 Olympic Games qualification places (Photo: ISSF)

Sailing: More than half of the Rio 2016 places have already been won, with 191 of the 380 slots filled at the world championships in Santander, Spain. In all, 39 countries qualified, with strong results for France, Great Britain and New Zealand, each winning 15 places.

Giles Scott earned one of the 15 slots at Rio 2016 won by Great Britain in Santander (Photo: ISAF)

Paralympic Games

Football 5-a-side:  Argentina was the first country to qualify for Rio 2016, as runner-up in the world championship in Tokyo. Brazil, who already had their place guaranteed as host nation, won the world title.

World championship finalists Brazil and Argentina are already through to the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games (Photo: CPB)

Football 7-a-side: Two countries have already qualified: Ukraine as winners of the European championship in Maia, Portugal, and Iran, who took the gold medal at the Asian Para Games in Incheon, the Republic of Korea.

Ukraine beat Holland in the European championship final to reach Rio 2016 (Photo: Euro Football 7 a side)

Equestrian: Great Britain, the Netherlands and Germany were the first to qualify for the team event, via the World Equestrian Games in Normandy, France.

Ten-time Paralympic champion Lee Pearson helped Great Britain triumph at the World Equestrian Games (Photo: FEI)

Goalball: The world championships in Espoo, Finland, qualified three women’s teams (the USA, Russia and Turkey) and two men’s teams (Finland and the USA).

The USA men’s and women’s goalball teams have both qualified for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games (Photo: IBSA)

Judo: Nine countries secured the 13 places up for grabs at the world championships in Colorado Springs, USA: Ukraine (3), Azerbaijan (2), China (2), Algeria, USA, Hungary, Mexico, Russia and Uzbekistan.

Dartanyon Crockett won a place for the United States at the Judo world championships (Photo: USA Judo)

Wheelchair rugby: Australia qualified for the Rio 2016 Games by defeating Canada in the final to win the world championship in Odense, Denmark.

Reigning Paralympic champions Australia defended their world title to qualify for the Rio 2016 Games (Photo: 2014 WRWC)

Wheelchair tennis: Japan’s Shingo Kunieda and Thailand’s Sakhorn Khanthasit were the first to qualify for Rio by winning the Asian Para Games titles in Incheon, South Korea.

Three-time Paralympic champion Shingo Kunieda will be at the Rio 2016 Games (Photo: Getty Images/Streeter Lecka)

Shooting: Of the 150 Paralympic Games places, 63 were decided at the IPC Shooting World Championships in Suhl, Germany. With 11 spots, the Republic of Korea will be a strong contendor.

More than a third of the Rio 2016 places were won at the IPC Shooting World Championships (Photo: CPB)

Sailing: The world championships in Halifax, Canada, qualified 39 athletes from 10 countries: Australia (6), Great Britain (6), France (4), Germany (4), Norway (4), Canada (6), Greece (3), USA (3), Italy (2) and Finland.

The SKUD18 Paralympic champions, Australia’s Liesl Tesch and Daniel Fitzgibbon, won the world title (Photo: IFDS/Tim Wikes)

Sitting volleyball: As the first qualifying tournament in all sports for the Rio 2016 Games, the world championships in Elblag, Poland, qualified the women’s teams from China and USA and the men’s teams from Bosnia & Herzegovina and Iran. The Asian Para Games in Incheon qualified the women’s team from Iran and the men’s team from China.

Bosnia & Herzegovina and Iran qualified for Rio 2016 via the world championships (Photo: Publicity/World Championship)

Qualification for the Olympic and Paralympic Games is an ongoing process and final entries will only be officially confirmed in July 2016 (for the Olympic Games) and August 2016 (for the Paralympic Games). Entries are recommended by national federations or sport organisations to their respective National Olympic Committees or National Paralympic Committees, who decide on final selections.