Machiko Nakanishi, Akiko Sekine and Kiyomi Niwata have virtually guaranteed themselves Olympic berths after finishing among the top 20 at the Triathlon World Championships in Portugal on Sunday.
According to the Japan Triathlon Union, Nakanishi clocked 1 hour, 53 minute, 35 seconds to place sixth in the 51.5-km race staged on the island of Madeira, while Sekine was 10th in 1:54:34 and Niwata 17th in 1:55:27.
Japan is likely to be given three spots in the women's triathlon at the Athens Olympics this summer, with the number to be announced Friday.
In the men's triathlon elite race, Hirokatsu Tayama placed ninth for the highest-ever finish by a Japanese and won the only Olympic berth available for Japan in the men's discipline.