Game Changers: How the Future of Pentathlon was Shaped with an Indoor Evolution in 2025

In 2025, Modern Pentathlon did not just change its format, it changed its stage.

The season became defined by an indoor evolution that brought the sport closer to an arena product: compact, controllable, high-energy and designed to enhance the experience for spectators, broadcasters and athletes.

The key enabler was the full integration of Obstacle alongside Direct Elimination Fencing, disciplines that can be built and presented with theatre-like precision inside major venues. This shift aligned closely with UIPM’s strategic focus on entertainment value and youth appeal, allowing competitions to move into modern indoor arenas where lighting, sound and presentation could be fully controlled.

Future Pentathlon isn’t a one-dimensional indoor concept. It is three-dimensional. It is outdoors, it is indoors and it is iconic – the sport can now be staged in vast stadia, in compact basketball-style arenas and on the ground in front of world-famous landmarks. Anything, anywhere, is possible.

Kaunas became the defining proof point of the 2025 season. Staged at Žalgiris Arena, the UIPM 2025 Pentathlon World Championships delivered a single-venue spectacle that reimagined how the sport could be experienced live. The Lithuanian organisers built on the blueprint of their Hungarian counterparts, who had already broken the mould with a captivating indoor UIPM Pentathlon World Cup Budapest.

Thousands of fans were brought into an environment that felt closer to elite indoor sport, with athlete walk-ons, music, live entertainment and a tightly paced sequence of Fencing, Obstacle, Swimming and Laser Run. The indoor setting helped audiences follow the action more easily and created a continuous narrative from start to finish.

The response from Olympic leaders was telling: visiting IOC Members highlighted how the indoor setting gave the new format “a different dimension”, making the sport faster to follow and more compelling to watch, and more entertaining.

Indoor staging also transformed storytelling and broadcast production. Close-up camera positions, dynamic angles and real-time data integration enhanced clarity and emotional connection, while athlete personalities and rivalries became easier to showcase. This approach reinforced the sport’s identity as both athletic and theatrical.

The impact of the indoor evolution extended beyond 2025. Strategic planning for LA28 reflected the same philosophy, with strong advocacy for an indoor Olympic venue to maximise visual impact and global broadcast reach. By the end of the season, Kaunas stood as a clear blueprint for the future, demonstrating how innovation in environment and presentation can elevate Modern Pentathlon and support its long-term growth.