" The
most perfect sportsmen, therefore, are the Pentathletes
because in their bodies strength and speed are combined in
beautiful harmony. "
Aristotle
The Pentathlon consisting of running
the length of the stadium, jumping, throwing the spear,
throwing the discus and wrestling was introduced for the
first time at the 18th Olympiad in 708 BC,
probably by the Spartans as a method of training soldiers.
The Pentathlon held a position of unique importance in the
Games and was considered to be the climax, with the winner
ranked as "Victor Ludorum".
Admiration
for the ancient Pentathlon was fully shared by the founder
of the Modern Olympics, Baron Pierre de Coubertin,
and he expressed his support for the concept of Pentathlon
most eloquently and forcefully in his Memoires Olympiques
published in 1931.
From 1909,
he tried to have the event re-introduced into the Olympic
program and after two failed attempts, Pentathlon’s moment
came at the 14th session of the International
Olympic Committee in Budapest (HUN) 1911, when as the Baron
stated:
"the Holy Ghost
of sport illuminated my colleagues and they accepted a
competition to which I attach great importance"
"the Holy Ghost of sport illuminated my colleagues and they
accepted a competition to which I attach great importance".
The Modern
Pentathlon, introduced at the 5th Olympiad in
Stockholm (SWE) 1912, comprised of the contemporary sports
of pistol shooting, fencing, swimming,
horse riding and running, embraced the spirit of its
ancient counterpart. It was De Coubertin’s belief that it
would be the event, above all others, that "tested a man’s
moral qualities as much as his physical resources and
skills, producing thereby the ideal, complete athlete.
The choice
of the five diverse and unrelated sports that make up the
Modern Pentathlon arose out of the romantic, tough
adventures of a liaison officer whose horse is brought down
in enemy territory. Having defended himself with his pistol
and sword, he swims across a raging river and delivers the
message on foot. Not surprisingly, it was the military who
most enthusiastically adopted this new sport with its
inherent demands of courage, co-ordination,
physical fitness, self-discipline and flexibility in
ever changing circumstances. A young American Lieutenant,
later to be the famous 2nd World War General
George S. Patton, was to finish fifth in the first ever
Olympic Modern Pentathlon competition and for many years,
the Modern Pentathlon was used as part of the final
examinations at a number of European Military Academies. The
mixture of physical and mental skills demanded in the
Pentathlon has also meant that athletes have been able to
compete in as many as three or four Olympic Games. This is
because while running and swimming times can be expected to
decline with age, experience and skill in the technical
disciplines often increase.
The oldest
Olympic gold medalist in the Modern Pentathlon to date is
Pavel Lednev (former URS and current RUS) who was 37 years
old at the 1980 Games in Moscow.
Today, both
men and women complete all five events of the Modern
Pentathlon in one day. Youth events are completed over two
or exceptionally three days. A points system for each event
is based on a standard performance earning 1,000 points. The
winner is the Pentathlete who has accumulated the most
points after the five events. At official UIPM competitions,
there is some flexibility in the order of events, but the
running must always be the final event.
Modern
Pentathlon
An
Ancient History
Modern Pentathlon owes its existence
to a legend, to the pentathlons of Ancient Greece and to the
tireless efforts of Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the
Modern Olympics and IOC President for over three decades.
He envisioned a competition that would determine the greatest
all-around sportsman, similar to the pentathlon of the ancient
Olympic Games.
In Aristotle's words: "The most perfect sportsmen, therefore,
are the pentathletes because in their bodies strength and speed
are combined in beautiful harmony."
The legend is of modern pentathlon is of a Napoleonic cavalry
officer who is sent to deliver an urgent dispatch.
Given an unfamiliar horse, he rode across challenging terrain
under enemy fire shooting a number of his pursuers. His
ammunition expended, he was then confronted by a soldier with
his sword drawn. He won the duel and remounted his horse only to
reach a river, which his steed could not cross. Our gallant hero
swam the river and then ran the rest of the way to deliver his
message successfully.
Baron Pierre de Coubertin sought to include in the Modern
Olympics an event that embraced the spirit of the ancient
Olympic Games, Stockholm 1912
He achieved his goal in 1912 when modern pentathlon was
introduced at the Olympic Games in Stockholm with the five
disciplines of shooting, fencing, swimming, riding and running,
reputedly influenced by this tale of the cavalry officer. Modern
Pentathlon is Education by essence: a complete sport, on the
physical side - Swimming , Running are the basic disciplines; on
the mental side - Shooting requires stress control and a precise
technique; on the intellectual side - Fencing requires
adaptability and intelligence; Riding an unknown horse requires
a mix of adaptability, self control and c
General George S. Patton
In this
first Olympic Modern Pentathlon competition, the United Sates
was represented by a 26-
-year-old second lieutenant, George S. Patton, a skilled rider
and fencer.
Patton did very well in four of the events and might well have
won the gold medal except for his poor marksmanship. He finished
21st in the pistol shooting event, which dropped him to fifth
overall.
The events have changed somewhat since 1912.
The equestrian event, originally a 5000m cross-country ride
against time, is now a 400m show jumping course. The swimming
event has been cut from 300m to 200m, the cross-country running
event from 4000m to 3000m. The shooting event, originally a
22-caliber pistol shot from 25m at a turning target, has become
a 10m air pistol shot at a stationary target.
As in 1912, the fencing portion of the modern pentathlon is a
round robin-tournament, with a single touch deciding each match.
Scoring was originally done by a points-for-place system with
the lowest score winning, but since 1956 the competition has
been scored using points tables for each of the five events.
The competition originally took place over a five-day period,
with a single event on each day. In 1984, the pistol shooting
and cross-country run were both conducted on the fourth and
final day. The One Day" format was introduced in 1996 with a
very exciting final handicap run and has resulted in a better
understanding on the part of spectators. Modern Pentathlon was
one of the first events to sell out all its tickets in Atlanta
1996 and in Sydney there was a full stadium in both the men's
and women's events and more spectators (15,000) than the Cuba -
USA baseball final match. The reasons for this success were
defined in an independent survey made during Sydney 2000 and
published in the June-July 2002 Olympic Review, including:
because of 1 ticket for 5 sports that can be watched completely,
because of the admiration of multi-talented athletes instead of
specialists, because of the victory open until the end, because
of this especially strong spirit of competition, because of a
greater sense of Fair Play than in other sports, and because the
athletes are not so much concerned with financial rewards as in
other sports.
Woman began competing in the modern pentathlon in the 1970s and
the first women's world championship was conducted in 1981 and
have been a part of the world championships ever since. However
it could all have been very different. UIPM's magazine in 1997
carried an article about a young girl who, following a
successful show jumping season in America, applied to enter the
1912 Modern Pentathlon. It was left to the Swedish organisers to
make the final decision, De Coubertin himself was opposed, on
the grounds of protecting young women from harm or
embarrassment. In the IOC archives a letter was unearthed from
Mr. Hellstroem, secretary of the Organising Committee stating
that at the meeting on May 14 1912 "It was decided not to admit
ladies in the Modern Pentathlon." So that was that, for another
86 years!
Sydney
2000 Sydney
2000
Patiently the women have trained and competed for more than a
quarter of a century, waiting for their moment to be elevated to
Olympics status. Finally in 2000 for the first time they were
included in Sydney Olympics.
The IOC has made several historic decisions for our sport over
the past few years.
The women were included for the first time in 2000 and our
numbers have gone from only 32 men in 1996 to 24 men and 24
women in 2000. Less than a year ago, IOC President Rogge showed
his support to Modern Pentathlon by increasing its quota from 48
to 64 athletes. These have been very positive signals for our
sport from the IOC.
94 Nations from five continents are now affiliated with the UIPM
from the time when Pierre de Coubertin founded the sport in 1912
from scratch. Since 1948, when UIPM was created to oversee and
develop the sports, UIPM has constantly increased the
participation of the affiliated nations and athletes in its
competitions by specific development programs. World Cups and
World Championships are run on all five continents, giving
athletes from all continents equal chances to participate at the
Olympic Games. With the global practice of Biathle (run & swim
combination) among its member federations, UIPM has enlarged its
base driving more young athletes to the practice of Modern
Pentathlon. It is planned that next year at least another 5 new
countries will have joined UIPM. Modern Pentathlon is already
included in Regional Games such as Asian Games, Pan American
Games, Central American and Caribbean Games. It is also part of
CISM. As membership continues to grow, plans are to be included
also in Balkan Games, Mediterranean Games, etc.
Modern Pentathlon is a true representation of the Olympic
Movement. The 5 Olympic rings are reflected in Modern
Pentathlon's 5 events and participation from all 5 continents.
It is a true sport of the Olympic Games, created by the founder
of the Modern Games Pierre de Coubertin and reflecting the
ideals embodied by the Olympic Movement.
"Pentathlon is a capsule of life. People who train
pentathlon from a young age succeed in their professional lives,
many to an extreme level; it is normal for the Pentathlete to
excel on many levels. The famous ones that come to mind are:
Chevalier Raul Mollet
(who died earlier this year),
President NOC Belgium, Zbigniew Pacelt, Minister of Finance of
Sport of Poland,
Ivar Sisniega 
Ivar Sisniega, ex-Minister of Finance and Sport of Mexico and
General George Patton, USA. Many countries elect pentathletes as
the best athletes of all sports in their country, showing their
respect for this extreme sport. Some of these athletes are:
Andres Balczo and Gabor Balogh (HUN), Pavel Ledniew (URS),
Danielle Masalla (ITA), Janusz Pyciak-Peciak (POL), and
Stephanie Cook (GBR.). I chose the sport of Modern Pentathlon
for its values...I would like my son to get the same opportunity
in the future."
- Janusz Peciak (POL), Olympic Gold Medallist 1976
- Organization of Modern
Pentathlon
Modern
Pentathlon was administered directly by the IOC until 1948,
when the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) was
founded by Gustaf Dyrssen (1920 Olympic Champion) from
Sweden as the first President and Sven Thofelt, Secretary
General, and later to be President for 28 years (IOC Member
1970 – 1976).
In 1960,
Biathlon (cross
country skiing and rifle shooting) was introduced in the
Olympic Program and joined the Union which thereafter became
the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne and Biathlon
(UIPMB). In 1993, an agreement was made to retain the Union
as an umbrella body under which the UIPM and the
International Biathlon (IBU) could act autonomously. The
UIPMB, however, continued to be the only international
multi-sport organization recognized by the IOC.
Until 1998,
the President of Modern Pentathlon acted as President of the
Union during the two years prior to the Summer Games, and
the President of the Biathlon acted as such for two years
prior to each of the Winter Games. At this moment, there are
over 90 National Modern Pentathlon Federations affiliated
with UIPM and more than 40 affiliated with IBU.
Having
matured into an organization capable of continuing on its
own, the IBU decided on June 26, 1998, to exist
autonomously. The separation from the UIPMB took effect on
September 26, 1998, creating two distinct International
Federations – the UIPM and the IBU, both of which are
recognized by the IOC and GAISF. The two sports will
continue to maintain relations in various aspects, including
marketing.
- Modern Pentathlon
Competitions
Ø
Olympic
Games
From
1912 to 1980 the Olympic Modern Pentathlon competition
was held over five days with one event per day. Between
1984 and 1992, experiments with the format of the sport
meant that the competition was held over four days with
either running and shooting or swimming and shooting on
the same day. There were individual medals awarded and
Team medals decided by adding the three individual
scores of Team members together.
For the
Atlanta Olympic Games in 1996, the competition was a
one-day event in which 32 men who qualified via
pre-Olympic competitions participated. Only individual
medals were awarded. In 1998, the UIPM received
approval for Women to compete in the Sydney 2000
Olympics Games.
Ø
World
Championships
World
Championships for Men take place on each non-Olympic
Year and for Women, Junior Men and Women, Youth A (boys
and girls 17-18 years) and Men’s Team Relay, annually.
From
year 2000 World Championships will be also organized
every year for Men and Women.
Youth
World Championships differ slightly in their format in
that they do not include riding. A number of at least 96
Men and Women may compete at the World Championships,
having achieved a qualifying standard. There are
three elements to the World Championships:
Semi-Finals for the Individual competition,
Finals for the Individual competition and the
Team Relay competition.
Athletes
qualify for the Final via two or three Semi-Final groups
of up to 32x athletes with ten promoted and the best two
11th placed athletes.
The
Final is therefore comprised of the best 32 competitors
from such qualification.
Individual medals are awarded as well as team medals
which are decided by adding the three individual team
member’s scores together.
Ø
Team Relay
The Team
Relay event consists of 16 teams of three athletes
competing in a continuous relay completed in one day.
Each Team Member fires 10 shots, swims 100m, fences one
opposing team member, runs 1,500m, and rides a horse
over 8 x show jumps. In this way, the relay
competition is an exciting spectacle requiring
contribution form each team member in every event.
Ø
World Cup
Competition
A World
Cup series for both Men and Women has been organized
since 1990.
The best
32 x athletes qualify for the World Cup Final via a
league table constructed from their three best results
at World Cup competitions. The very best 32 athletes are
guaranteed to compete in the Finals. Prize money
is also available.
Ø
Pistol
Shooting
Air
pistols are used to fire 20 shots at centre fire targets
at a range of 10 m. The athletes have 40 seconds to fire
each shot at a target of 155 mm in diameter. The target
is made up of concentric rings ranging from one point on
the outside to 10 points for a bulls-eyes. Rings one to
six are on a white background and rings seven to ten are
on a black background. Targets are changed after each
shot and a score of 172 out of a possible 200 is worth
1,000 Pentathlon points. Every target point above or
below 172 is worth plus or minus 12 Pentathlon points.
Ø
Fencing
Athletes
fence every other competitor with epee swords for one
hit within a time limit of one minute. If a hit is not
scored within the time, both competitors register a
defeat. The target area is the whole body and hits are
registered via an electronic tip at the end of the
sword. A total score of 70% victories equals 1,000
points with the value of each hit above and below this
percentage depending on the number of athletes
competing.
Ø
Swimming
The
swimming event is a free-style race over 200 m for men
and women with athletes seeded in heats according to
their personal best time. A time of 2 minutes 30 seconds
for men and 2 minutes 40 seconds for women earns 1000
Pentathlon Points. Every 1/10 of second above or below
this time is equal to plus or minus one point.
Ø
Riding
The
athletes ride unfamiliar horses over show-jumping
obstacles of up to 120 cm in height and 130 cm in spread
including one double and one triple. The track is
between 350-400 m in length. Athletes pick their horses
by lot and have 20 minutes and five practice fences for
warm-up. Competitions start with 1,100 points and lose
30 points for knockdowns, 40 points for refusal or
disobedience to jump, 60 points for falling off and 3
points per second for being over the standard time. If
the round takes longer than double the standard time
(for instance 2 min. 18 sec. for a 400 m course) the
competitor is eliminated and scores zero point.
Ø
Running
The
athletes run over a cross-country or road course which
is 3,000 m in length for men and women. Competitors at
Olympic Games, World Championships and World Cups are
set off at intervals which correspond in seconds to the
Pentathlon points difference between themselves and
the athlete in front. The running event has in this way,
a "chase" start. During qualifying events, a pack start
is also possible. A time of 10 minutes for men and 11
minutes 20 seconds for women earns 1,000 Pentathlon
Points. Every half-second above or below this standard
will gain or lose 2 points.
-
from the Union International
de Pentathlon Moderne |
