Sports: Athletes who already qualified for 2020 Olympics will keep their spot in 2021

The relaunch of the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021 will include around 6,500 of the athletes that qualified for the competition in its postponed 2020 edition.

This news was made in a redrawn version of qualifying regulations that the International Olympic Committee released Tuesday.

The IOC spoke to international governing federations of different sports to mind the middle ground "between protecting those athletes who were close to qualifying based on the previous 2020 deadlines and also ensuring the best athletes at the Olympic Games" while including 2021 performances, according to the announcement per the AP.

In other words, there is a chance that someone's outstanding performance in 2021 could help that person edge out someone who may have had a better shot at qualifying for the games in 2020.

Still, what this means is that everyone who officially qualified for 2020 will be there in 2021. The rule change even resulted in relaxing regulations such as boxing's age limit of 40. At the same time, it allows those who would have been too young for 2020 in sports like gymnastics to compete for a spot for the 2021 Tokyo Games.

The rescheduled Olympics will be held from July 23 through Aug. 8 of next year. The new deadline for qualifying for this competition is June 29, 2021, with entry lists due a week later. cbssports