Joint message from UIPM President and Secretary General: Next steps on our journey to the future

Dear Modern Pentathlon community,

Our movement has started something very special with the New Pentathlon Discipline Test Events in Ankara (TUR) and Manila (PHI).

We hope you have read the feedback given by some of the participants in Turkey and the Philippines. Here is what two of our pentathletes said:

• “I really thought the Obstacle Discipline was cool with a lot of diverse obstacles.” – Cedric Chatellier (FRA)
• “It’s so exciting and interesting. This new discipline is going to be so challenging and the sport will be more equal with this event.” – Princess Arbilon (PHI)

During this very important testing phase, we are not looking for exaggeration. We hope to receive measured, honest feedback – and this is what we got from athletes who have ignored the negativity coming from some parts of the community and made a bold statement.

They have stated that they want to be part of a future for Modern Pentathlon that is not only sustainable but full of potential for growth.

Our journey to the future is well under way.

The two athletes named above are aged under 21, and we might see them soon competing in both Modern Pentathlon and Obstacle Discipline. That is because the next two Test Events will be held during our flagship competitions for young athletes – the UIPM 2022 Youth World Championships (U19/U17) in Lignano Sabbiadoro (ITA) and the UIPM 2022 Junior World Championships in Zielona Gora (POL).

We are all looking forward to seeing how young members of our athlete community interact with the obstacles put before them – after all, pentathletes are the most versatile and adaptable athletes in the world.

So far, the response of the next generation has been inspiring. We saw incredible scenes in Manila (PHI) where a eight-year-old boy took on the course and showed the adults how it’s done. Anything is possible in sport – and if we ever need a reminder that this is true, we look to the people who will come after us.

And this is a key point about the New Pentathlon Discipline process. We must always remember that our chief responsibilities lie with the many generations to come. It can be hard to accept, but this is not about the current athletes or administrators – we are building a foundation for tomorrow so that our grandchildren and their grandchildren can still have an Olympic dream and the incredible option of training for a sport that has five distinct disciplines.

Now we would like to give you some information on next steps, because many of you will be wondering what happens after Test Event IV. Here are just a few of the developments to expect in the phases to come.

The critical period is late 2022 and early 2023, when UIPM 2022 Congress will vote on motions relating to the new discipline, and proposals will then be sent to the IOC Programme Commission who will make recommendations to the IOC Executive Board about the programme for LA28. And if everything goes according to plan…

• We can potentially start to introduce the new discipline in Youth and Junior events from the 2023 season
• Training and competition guidelines for the new discipline will be established
• An equipment catalogue for the new discipline, including different levels of events, will be created
• The new discipline would be added to the UIPM Sports Pyramid, not only as a new element of UIPM Sports, but also with the potential to create multiple new multi-discipline combinations
• UIPM will encourage potential new athletes to start practising the other Modern Pentathlon disciplines and to join our National Federations
• UIPM will add relevant new discipline contents to the Judges and Coaches Certification Programmes (JCP/CCP) as well as the future Athlete Centered Programme (ACP). 

After that, our journey to the future will be a little bit closer to the destination.

UIPM President Dr Klaus Schormann

UIPM Secretary General Shiny Fang