Baron Pierre de Coubertin, widely credited as the founder of the modern Olympics, spent two years lobbying for the new Games to include a modern version of the pentathlon event that was a key element of the ancient Olympics.

The pentathlon - consisting of running the length of the stadium, jumping, throwing the spear, throwing the discus and wrestling - was introduced at the 18th Olympiad in 708 BC.

For more than 900 years, the event was regarded as the climax of the Games, with the winner taking on the title of “Victor Ludorum” (Winner of the Games).

De Coubertin had his wish in 1912 when, at the Stockholm Games, the modern pentathlon took a place in the Olympic programme which it continues to retain.

Reflecting on his successful championing of the modern pentathlon at the 14th session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1911, De Coubertin commented: “the Holy Ghost of sport illuminated my colleagues and they accepted a competition to which I attach great importance.”

In its original format, designed to embrace the spirit of its ancient counterpart, modern pentathlon involved shooting with pistols, fencing, swimming freestyle, riding over obstacles on horses assigned by lot shortly before competition, and finishing with a cross-country run.

The basic premise behind the modern pentathlon is of a soldier being ordered to deliver a message. He starts on the back of an unfamiliar horse, but is forced to dismount and fight a duel with swords. He escapes, but is trapped and has to shoot his way out with a pistol. He then swims across a river before completing his mission with a long run through woods.

It was De Coubertin’s belief that it would be this 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.”

This core challenge for Olympic athletes celebrated its Games centenary at London 2012, by which time it had altered and modernised its format while taking care to retain the elements that make it a uniquely challenging historical competition.

After years in which the Olympic competition took up five days, or on occasion four, the 1996 Atlanta Games marked a revolution in its preparation as it became a one-day event, concluding with a time-handicapped run which meant that the first runner to finish was the overall champion.

Two years earlier the traditional pistol using 0.22 calibre ammunition had been replaced by air pistols firing 0.177 calibre pellets.

The years between the Beijing 2008 Games and the London 2012 Games were marked by two more dramatic changes designed to improve the event’s overall appeal and potential for participation.

In 2009, the shooting and running elements were put together into a concluding Combined Event, again employing a time-handicap based on the standings after the opening three events and requiring competitors to run three 1000m laps, each prefaced by hitting five static targets.

In 2011, a further alteration to the sport was made when air pistols were replaced by laser pistols – a safer alternative.

The UIPM President, Dr h.c. Klaus Schormann, commented: "UIPM is proud and happy, that we could finish our process of modernising our sport in the year 2012 which was our 100-year anniversary of being in the Olympic Games.”

In January 2013, UIPM proposed a revolutionary new concept for the sport which would see all five events staged in the same arena. "After 15 year of exciting innovations in modern pentathlon I welcome you to our newest concept, the Pentathlon Stadium," said President Schormann.

"Now a spectator can watch five disciplines in five hours with one ticket from one seat.”

On February 11, in Lausanne, the IOC confirmed modern pentathlon’s continuing place as one of the 25 core sports of the Olympic programme until 2020.

The core sport remains largely the same since London 2012, although it was tweaked in 2013, when the combined event was altered to involve four 800m laps, each prefaced by laser shooting at five targets, with the intention of restoring more weight to the shooting element.

A further innovation was agreed in 2014 in the form of the fencing bonus round, offering athletes who have completed the traditional round robin competition an additional chance to win bonus points while focusing the action on a single piste – creating a more exciting experience for athletes, spectators and broadcasters.

At Rio 2016, the women’s and men’s individual competitions will take place over three days – from August 18 to 20 – and will be hosted across three different venues -  the Youth Arena, the Deodoro Aquatics Centre and the Deodoro Stadium.

Meanwhile modern pentathlon has created a calendar of world class events that is growing and proliferating across the world.

The UIPM World Championships, established in 1949, take place on an annual basis, involving individual, team and relay competition.

Unlike other sports, the UIPM World Championships still take place in an Olympic year, with Moscow having hosted the 2016 event.

Hungary is the leading nation in terms of World Championships medals having won 124 since the inaugural event in Stockholm, 51 of which are gold.

The same country has secured the most medals at the Olympic Games with a total haul of 22, including nine golds.

The UIPM also runs an annual World Cup series which allows the world’s best athletes the chance to compete against each other on a regular basis.

Between four and six events form the annual calendar, with a World Cup Final held each year to decide the overall winners. The 2016 finaletook place  Sarasota in the United States, which followed events in Kecskemét, Hungary, Italian capital Rome, Rio de Janeiro and Cairo.

“The UIPM World Cup offers a global showcase to our corporate partners, our broadcast partners and our officials, all of whom are very well accommodated by our hosts,” said Schormann.

Continental Championships also form part of the UIPM portfolio, along with World Championships at junior level.

As well as the traditional form of the sport, which incorporates all five disciplines, the UIPM sanctions five other formats – Tetrathlon (four disciplines), Traithle (three disciplines), and three others involving two disciplines in the form of Biathle, World Schools Biathlon and Laser-Run.

Tetrathlon Swimming, Running, Shooting and Fencing

Tetrathlon is the last step before the full modern pentathlon event. Competitions feature swimming, running, shooting, and fencing, with all four taking place on the same day.

The Tetrathlon originated as a sport for boys, although there are now competitions for girls and for different age groups. It requires competitors to demonstrate general athletic ability and a steady hand for shooting.

Minimus competitions are staged for eight to 11-year-olds, while those aged 12 to 14 compete in the junior classification. Athletes aged between 15 and 21 participate in either intermediate or open events, depending on their skill level.

The premier worldwide event in Tetrathlon is the World Youth A Championships, which are due to be held this year in Limerick, Ireland from July 14 to 18.

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Triathle Shooting, Swimming and Running

Triathle is a new development initiative by UIPM in which athletes compete in a shoot-swim-run competition. Triathle made its debut on the international stage at the Biathle Triathle World Championships 2013.

From 2014 onwards, it became a part of the Biathle World Tour to constitute the Biathle-Triathle World Tour.

Triathle events are staged at both international and national level, with the highest echelon being the UIPM World Tour and UIPM World Championships, and are split into three formats: UIPM Beach Traithle, UIPM Street Triathle and UIPM Discontinuous Triathle. Athletes ranging from under 11 to 60 years and over participate in this innovative event.

The youngest athletes compete in a 50 metres swim, a 400m run and are given 10 shots from a distance of three metres, while the seniors - competitors aged 22 and over - participate in a 200m swim, a 3.2 kilometres run and have 20 shots from 10 metres.

The Biathle/Triathlete World Tour calendar is growing in popularity. In 2016, five events will be held, starting with the series opener in Graz in Austria in June. The event will then go on to visit Cuba, India, Argentina and Egypt, highlighting the universal appeal the format currently enjoys.

The Biathle/Triathle World Championships this year are due to be jointly held in Sarasota in the United States from October 21 to 23, while the 2017 event has been awarded to Kuşadası in Turkey.

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Biathle Running and Swimming

Biathle is a sub-sport of Modern Pentathlon invented to create opportunities to train for the running and swimming elements of the sport in race conditions.

It can also be seen as a sport in its own right. It bears a close resemblance to aquathlon, which also involves swimming and running but comes from triathlon sport.

Biathle is an event that involves the following sequence: Run-Swim-Run. It is a world class sport but not an Olympic one. The legs are raced with continuous transitions like triathlon. The race length is usually 200 m swim and 3.2 km run, which is shorter than aquathlon.

There is a variant in the form of Winter Biathle, which involves an indoor swimming and does not have continuous transitions.

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World Schools Biathlon Running and Swimming

World Schools Biathlon is a fun and simple way to organize event which helps National Federations increase their membership numbers and also to identify talent and recruit the right type of athletes for international events.

The event consists of two separate disciplines - swimming and running. The swimming discipline is conducted first in a 25m or 50m pool and then the running discipline, which involves a pack start, preferably on a standardised track although it can also be carried out on a flat surface if extra care is taken so that the distances are correct.

The age categories, ranging from under 9 to under 19, involve distances that rise from a 50m swim and a 400m run to a 200m swim and a 1600m run.

This is a great opportunity to give thousands of youngsters an experience of UIPM modern pentathlon with a scoring system which attempts to balance the performances in different sports.

The system of competition effectively allows athletes worldwide to compete against each other by having their National Federations send the results to UIPM who in turn compile and maintain the current world standings.

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Laser-Run Running and Shooting

Laser-Run is the latest original creation of UIPM, using a format of the combined shooting and running event which is designed to allow more athletes an entry point into the most demanding of Olympic sports.

Laser-Run was launched in 2015 with its own World Championships. Athletes of all ages from eight to 80 can participate and the event can be staged on beaches, in cities and in the countryside.

Laser-Run combines running and shooting in fast-paced and dynamic races including four rounds of laser pistol shooting from 10 metres distance and four times 800 metres run. Athletes have to hit a target five times before they can run. The total number of hits is 20 and total running distance is 3,200 metres.

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Women

Laura Asadauskaite 
Lithuania

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Laura Asadauskaite  Lithuania

Gold: Olympic Games 2012, World Championships 2013

Silver: World Championships 2009

Bronze: World Championships 2007, 2011

A true powerhouse of the sporting world, the mother of one is renowned for her iron will to win and she compiled a record score in winning the 2012 Olympics. A real combined event specialist.

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Amelie Caze 
France

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Amelie Caze  France

Gold: World Championship 2007, 2008, 2010

With three victories in four years, Caze took a stranglehold over the World Championships scene and also flew the flag for France at three consecutive Olympic Games.

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Elodie Clouvel 
France

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Elodie Clouvel  France

Silver: World Championships 2016

One of the emerging talents on the women’s scene, Clouvel is tall and strong and athletic. She set a world record for swimming at the 2016 World Championships.

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Stephanie Cook
Great Britain

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Stephanie Cook Great Britain

Gold: Olympic Games 2000, World Championships 2001

The first female pentathlete to win sport’s ultimate prize, when she made history at Sydney in 2000. It inspired a new generation to take up the sport in Great Britain where there has been a steady supply of female champions ever since.

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Eva Fjellerup
Denmark

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Eva Fjellerup Denmark

Gold: World Championships 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994

The advent of women’s pentathlon at the Olympics came four years too late for Denmark’s finest female competitor, who took part in fencing at Atlanta 1996. By then she was a four-time world champion for whom there was little left to achieve in pentathlon. Nobody has yet matched her record of world titles.

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Dorota Idzi 
Poland

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Dorota Idzi  Poland

Gold: World Championships 1988

Silver: World Championships 1996

Bronze: World Championships 1990, 1992, 1993, 1995

Now a popular TV personality in Poland, Idzi stood six times on the women’s individual podium at the pinnacle of the sport. She announced herself with victory on home soil in Warsaw.

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Sarolta Kovacs
Hungary

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Sarolta Kovacs Hungary

Gold: World Championships 2016

Silver: World Championships 2011

Another prototype from the production line of Hungarian pentathletes, Kovacs was an unexpected, but fully deserving, winner of the world title in 2016, in the same city of Moscow where she had previously won silver.

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Sabine Krapf 
Germany

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Sabine Krapf  Germany

Silver: World Championships 1981

Bronze: World Championships 1984, 1986, 1987

Another athlete who seized the opportunity when the World Championships opened its doors to women, she had a number of exciting battles with the likes of the Soviet Union’s Irina Kiseleva and maiden world champion Anne Ahlgren from Sweden. She is now head of the Olympic Games Unit at the German Olympic Sports Confederation.

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Yane Marques
Brazil

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Yane Marques Brazil

Silver: World Championships 2013

Bronze: Olympic Games 2012, World Championships 2015

A genuine trailblazer for modern pentathlon in Brazil and right across the Americas. One of Brazil’s great hopes for the Rio 2016 as an athlete who has proved that the big stage brings out the best in her.

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Aya Medany 
Egypt

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Aya Medany  Egypt

Silver: World Championships 2008

She was not the first African woman to win a medal in the World Championships, that was her compatriot Omnia Fakhry. But Medany caught the imagination of the sporting world when she competed at the 2004 Olympics in Athens aged just 15. She attended three Olympic Games and won multiple African titles, as well as the IOC Women and Sport Award for Africa in 2014.

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Samantha Murray 
Great Britain

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Samantha Murray  Great Britain

Gold: World Championships 2014

Silver: Olympic Games 2012

Bronze: World Championships 2012

As well as her success at the highest level, Murray has been decorated with gold medals at the 2015 World Cup Final and 2013 European Championships. A true champion and perennial contender.
 

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Lori Norwood
United States

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Lori Norwood United States

Gold: World Championships 1989

Silver: World Championships 1990

These days she makes her living as an accomplished sculptor, but in the 1980s Norwood was the first real trailblazer for women’s pentathlon in the United States, winning the country’s first - and so far only – women’s world title in 1989.

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Anastasiya Prokopenko 
Belarus

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Anastasiya Prokopenko  Belarus

Gold: World Laser-Run Championships 2015

Ahead of her third Olympic Games - she finished fourth in 2008 and sixth in 2012 - the experienced pentathlete is an expert combined eventer and she demonstrated her prowess by winning the first-ever laser-run crown.

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Chen Qian
China

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Chen Qian China

Gold: World Championships 2009

Silver: World Championships 2012, 2014, 2015

A consistent performer at the highest level, she was Asia’s first female world champion and has led the continent’s pentathletes on a steady rise to prominence.

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Lena Schoeneborn
Germany

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Lena Schoeneborn Germany

Gold: Olympic Games 2008, World Championships 2015

Silver: World Championships 2007

Bronze: World Championships 2009, 2010, 2016

Tall, athletic and determined, she has been one of the women to catch on the elite circuit for nearly a decade. Currently neck and neck with Lithuania’s Laura Asadauskaite with one Olympic, one World and two European titles to her name.

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Zsuzsanna Vörös
Hungary

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Zsuzsanna Vörös Hungary

Gold: Olympic Games 2004, World Championships 1999, 2003, 2004

Silver: World Championships 1998, 2002, 2005

Hungary has a proud pentathlon heritage and Vörös enjoys her place in the pantheon having dominated the global women’s scene for a number of years. Her country awarded her the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Merit.

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Men

András Balczó
Hungary

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András Balczó Hungary

Gold: Olympic Games 1972, World Championships 1963, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969

Silver: Olympic Games 1968, World Championships 1959, 1970

Bronze: World Championships 1961, 1971

One of the most successful pentathletes in history, few can match Balczó’s longevity, culminating in him winning the individual Olympic gold medal at Munich 1972 at the age of 34. He was the winner of a record five World Championship individual and five team titles, winning the individual championship consecutively from 1963-1969 (it was previously not held in Olympic years). Balczó was elected Hungarian Sportsman of the Year 1966, 1969 and 1972.

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Valentin Belaud 
France

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Valentin Belaud  France

Gold: World Championships 2016

Conquered the world aged 23 in 2016, four years after winning the junior world title, suggesting that his star is very much on the rise.

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Joel Bouzou 
France

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Joel Bouzou  France

Gold: World Championships 1987

Bronze: World Championships 1982

An individual world champion in 1987 and four-time Olympian, his influence on modern pentathlon has reverberated far beyond his own competitive career. A highly decorated figure in France with multiple honours, Bouzou continues to serve sport as vice-president of the UIPM and President of the World Olympians Association.

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Jamie Cooke
Great Britain

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Jamie Cooke Great Britain

Consistent performances, including back-to-back gold medals at the 2016 World Cup, including the Final, ensured that he will enter the Olympic Games as the world number one. Won the junior world title in 2011.

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Gustaf Dyrssen 
Sweden

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Gustaf Dyrssen  Sweden

Gold: Olympic Games 1920

Silver: Olympic Games 1924

An Olympic champion at Antwerp in 1920 and silver medallist at Paris four years later, Dyrssen also won a silver medal in the team épée fencing event at Berlin 1936, alongside Sven Thofelt, the 1928 Olympic pentathlon winner. He was the second President of the UIPM from 1949 until 1960, when he was succeeded by Thofelt.

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Amro El Geziry
Egypt

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Amro El Geziry Egypt

Silver: World Championships 2014

The name El Geziry became a regular sight at the top of the leaderboard at world events in the mid-2010s. Partly because Amro’s brother Omar is another world-class athlete from the hothouse of emerging talent that is Egyptian pentathlon.

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Jim Fox 
Great Britain

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Jim Fox  Great Britain

Fox is one of the most influential figures in the development of the sport in Britain. He won the British title record ten times and is the only British pentathlete to have competed in four Olympic Games. His fourth place in the individual event at Munich in 1972 was the best placing by a Briton up to that time. He followed that in Montreal four years later when he won a team gold medal with Danny Nightingale and Adrian Parker.

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Ilia Frolov
Russia

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Ilia Frolov Russia

Gold: World Championships 2008

Silver: World Championships 2007

A man who has spent most of his career on the podium, especially at World Cups and European Championships.

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Lars Hall 
Sweden

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Lars Hall  Sweden

Gold: Olympic Games 1952, 1956, World Championships 1950, 1951

The Swede made history with his victory at Helsinki in 1952 when he became the first civilian Olympic champion in the pentathlon. He arrived late for the pistol-shooting competition, but was saved from disqualification due to a protest that was still being sorted out. He also went on to win the gold medal at Melbourne in 1956.

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Alexandre Henrard 
France

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Alexandre Henrard  France

Gold: World Laser-Run Championships 2015, World Biathle-Triathle Championships 2015

One of a golden generation of French pentathletes, he proved his versatility by winning two world titles on the UIPM sub-sport scene in the same year.

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Pavel Lednev 
Soviet Union

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Pavel Lednev  Soviet Union

Gold: World Championships 1973, 1974, 1975, 1978

Silver: Olympic Games 1976, World Championships 1977

Bronze: Olympic Games 1980

Lednev competed at the 1968, 1972, 1976 and 1980 Olympics, and won a total of two gold medals, two silver medals and three bronze medals, more than any other pentathlete in history.

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Aleksander Lesun 
Russia

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Aleksander Lesun  Russia

Gold: World Championships 2012, 2014

Silver: World Championships 2010, 2011, 2015, 2016

Bronze: World Championships 2013

One of those athletes with an incredible knack of producing his best form when the occasion demands, Lesun has scaled the podium at seven consecutive World Championships. He was fourth at London 2012 and will be seeking his first Olympic medal at Rio 2016.

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Adam Marosi 
Hungary

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Adam Marosi  Hungary

Gold: World Championships 2009

Bronze: Olympic Games 2012, World Championships 2008, 2011

Having won junior world gold medal in 2004 he embarked on a long sequence of success, including multiple podium visits at world and European level. With an Olympic medal already in his back pocket he has every chance of repeating that feat at Rio 2016.

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Andrey Moiseyev 
Russia

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Andrey Moiseyev  Russia

Gold: Olympic Games 2004, 2008, World Championships 2011

Silver: World Championships 2012

Bronze: World Championships 2005

The first pentathlete since Sweden’s Lars Hall at Melbourne in 1956 to win back-to-back Olympic titles, the double in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 was an astonishing achievement in an era of well-funded high performance programmes across the world.

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Bob Nieman 
United States

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Bob Nieman  United States

Gold: World Championships 1979

A United States Air Force fighter pilot, Nieman competed in two Olympic Games, at Montreal 1976 and Seoul 1988, but his biggest achievement came in 1979 when he won the World Championships, making him the only American man to have ever claimed the individual title.

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Janusz Peciak 
Poland

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Janusz Peciak  Poland

Gold: Olympic Games 1976, World Championships 1977, 1981

Silver: World Championships 1978, 1979

The Pole won the Olympic gold medal at Montreal in 1976 and a year later lifted the first of two world titles. He was elected Polish Sports Personality of the Year following that 1977 triumph and again in 1981 after his second World Championships gold medal. He is now head coach of the American team. In 2014 was recognised for "Extraordinary Contributions to the Olympic Movement" by the UIPM and the Polish Olympic Committee.

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Dmitri Svatkovskiy 
Russia

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Dmitri Svatkovskiy  Russia

Gold: Olympic Games 2000, World Championships 1994, 1995

Silver: World Championships 1997

Bronze: World Championships 1999

Olympic gold in 2000 came as a real crowning glory for him. A winner of team silver as part of the Unified Team in Barcelona eight years previously, he enjoyed a glittering career in the sport and won back-to-back world titles in the mid-1990s. He has been President of the European Modern Pentathlon Federation since 1996 and is also the Deputy Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.

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David Svoboda 
Czech Republic

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David Svoboda  Czech Republic

Gold: Olympic Games 2012

Silver: World Championships 2008, 2009

He went into the Olympics at Beijing 2008 as a favourite for a medal but finished only 28th. He put that disappointment behind him four years later at London 2012 to win the gold medal. Since then Svoboda, who is in the Czech Army and studying PE at Charles University in Prague, has suffered with injuries but hopes to defend his title at Rio 2016.

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Sven Thofelt 
Sweden

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Sven Thofelt  Sweden

Gold: Olympic Games 1928

The Swede was also a talented fencer who followed his pentathlon gold medal at Amsterdam in 1928 with silver and bronze in team épée at Berlin 1936 and London 1948. He was an adjutant of King Gustav V. He also served as a sports administrator, in 1948 becoming secretary general of the UIPM and serving as its President from 1960 to 1988. He was also President of the Swedish Fencing Federation and of the Swedish Olympic Committee. Between 1970 and 1976 Thofelt was an IOC member and later an IOC honorary member.

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Ferenc Török 
Hungary

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Ferenc Török  Hungary

Gold: Olympic Games 1964

Silver: World Championships 1963

Bronze: World Championships 1962, 1965, 1966

Winner of the Olympic gold medal at Tokyo in 1964, Török triumphed in the absence of team-mate András Balczó, who missed the Games after being sent to jail by the Hungarian Government for smuggling watches from the West. Török was voted Hungary’s Sportsman of the Year following his victory.

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Pavlo Tymoshchenko 
Ukraine

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Pavlo Tymoshchenko  Ukraine

Gold: World Championships 2015

Underlined his promise with a seventh place at the 2008 Olympics and matured steadily until taking the sport’s biggest annual prize aged 28. Named Ukraine’s Sports Person of the Year in 2016.
 

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Andrejus Zadneprovskis 
Lithuania

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Andrejus Zadneprovskis  Lithuania

Gold: World Championships 2000, 2004

Silver: Olympic Games 2004

Bronze: Olympic Games 2008, World Championships 1996, 2006

The Lithuanian showed remarkable consistency, winning Olympic and silver medals at Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008, as well as being crowned world champion in 2000 and 2004. In 2009 he married modern Laura Asadauskaitė, winner of the Olympic gold at London 2012. They have daughter who was born in 2010 – surely a champion pentathlete of the future?

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Cao Zhongrong 
China

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Cao Zhongrong  China

Silver: Olympic Games 2012

The first Asian to win an Olympic pentathlon medal, at London in 2012, the Chinese has enjoyed considerable career longevity, qualifying for his third Games at Rio 2016 at the age of 35.

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