The modern pentathlon, the Olympic event that seeks to crown the most “complete” athlete, is about to get started at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Here is a breakdown of what to expect as the modern pentathlon gets underway:
What sports are in the modern pentathlon?
The modern pentathlon comprises of four events that combine five sports: racing, swimming, running and shooting.
Fencing is split into two rounds. The first is a round to establish rankings for the competitors. Each athlete competes against each other in a bout that lasts one minute or until the first hit. The second round is single elimination, with each bout lasting 45 seconds.
For the racing component, athletes will ride an unfamiliar horse they were given to through a random draw 20 minutes before and will have to complete a show jump course.
The swimming competition is a 200m freestyle event.
Finally, the running and shooting event is where athletes alternate between running and shooting at five targets from a distance of 10m.
How does scoring work for the pentathlon at the 2024 Olympics?
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The modern pentathlon is scored with two separate rounds.
The first combines points scored in the racing, swimming and fencing events.
For fencing, athletes will earn points for winning bouts that take place within the second round of that event. Points for the racing and swimming events will be accumulated based on each athlete's performance in the event.
The points scored by each athlete in the first round, also called the semi-final round, are used to determine their placement at the start of the second round, which comprises of the running and shooting event.
Only 18 of the 36 athletes who compete in the semi-finals for both the men's and women's competitions will move on to the final round.
Athletes will have a handicap of one second for every point they scored in the first round. The first athlete starts with zero on the clock, and then the athlete with the second-most points from the first round starts at zero plus the number of seconds difference and so on.
The first athlete to cross the finish line at the final round wins the gold medal.
What is the schedule for the modern pentathlon?
The modern pentathlon will begin on Thursday, Aug. 8, with the fencing ranking rounds for both the men's and women's individual events (there is no modern pentathlon group event). The men's event begins at 5 a.m. EST and the women's event begins at 8:30 a.m. EST.
After the fencing ranking rounds, the modern pentathlon moves onto the semifinal and final events that will hold all four components on the same day.
Here is the rest of the modern pentathlon schedule:
- Men's semifinal, 7 a.m. EST on Aug. 9
- Men's semifinal, 11 a.m. EST on Aug. 9
- Women's semifinal, 3:30 a.m. EST on Aug. 10
- Women's semifinal, 7:30 a.m. EST on Aug. 10
- Men's final, 11:30 a.m. EST on Aug. 10
- Women's final, 5 a.m. EST on Aug. 11
Are Americans competing in the modern pentathlon?
One American, 32-year-old Jessica Savner, is competing in the women's individual event. It is her first Olympic appearance.
Who is favored to win the modern pentathlon?
For the men, Hungary's Csaba Bohm comes in as the 2024 world champion in the modern pentathlon, according to NBC Olympics. The silver medalist from Tokyo, Egypt’s Ahmed El-Gendy, as well as the bronze medalist, South Korea's Jun Woong-Tae, are also names to watch.
On the women's side, Lithuania's Laura Asadauskaite, who won gold in 2012 and silver in Tokyo and is making her fifth appearance in the Olympics, is seen as a favorite. The reigning world champion, South Korea’s Seong Seung-Min, and Italy's Elena Micheli, who won back-to-back world championships in 2022 and 2023, are also competing.
