Athletes that finished in the top three of their event and held the IAAF qualifying standard were eligible to represent the United States at the 1997 World Championships.
In addition, this was the first year to also allow the reigning world champions an automatic qualification separate from the national selection.
The Men's 4 × 400 metres relay crossed the finish line in first, but was disqualified in 2009 following the admission of long term doping by Antonio Pettigrew.
Key: ≠ Not selected for World Championships in Athletics due to failure to reach IAAF qualifying standard within the specified time limit.
Since Allen Johnson and Bryan Bronson received a bye, 4th place Mark Crear and Octavius Terry were allowed to compete in their respective hurdle races.