UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Championships: Guzi (HUN) and Belarus trio handle the heat in Women’s Semi-finals
- World No.1 Guzi (HUN) enjoys serene passage to showpiece Final alongside Gnedtchik (BLR)
- Hureyeva (BLR) and Arol (BLR) cross first as Khalil (EGY) struggles in shooting range
- Epic Laser Run from Bryson (GBR) inspires Elgindy (EGY), Clark (GBR) & Aleksandravice (LTU)
The leading ladies of Pentathlon are poised for a fascinating Super Sunday Women’s Final after a boiling hot day of Semi-final action at the UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Championships.
Under a 30C sun, Blanka Guzi of Hungary and Mariya Gnedtchik of Belarus breezed to the finish line in Semi-final A, before Gnedtchik (BLR) watched two team-mates win Semi-final B as Viyaleta Hureyeva (BLR) and Anastasiya Arol (BLR) proved more than capable of handling the sweltering conditions.
Without a recovery day, it will be interesting to see which of the qualified finalists can back up best – especially those who had to dig deep to come from behind with epic Laser Run heroics. None more so than Kerenza Bryson of Great Britain, who overtook half the field in Semi-final A to set the fastest time of the day and pinch 9th place. In Semi-final B, Ganah Elgindy of Egypt, Poppy Clark (GBR) and Gintare Aleksandravice of Lithuania were inspired to mount their own incredible comebacks.
The stage is set for a mouthwatering showdown between Guzi (HUN), the Belarusians and other serious contenders such as Anna Jurt of Switzerland, Ilke Ozyuksel of Türkiye, Seungmin Seong of Korea and China duo Mingyu Zhang and Xiyao Wu.
But what can we expect of defending champion Farida Khalil (EGY)? The teenage phenomenon ranked 2nd in Fencing, 1st in Obstacle Racing and 5th in Swimming in Semi-final B, but her shooting was far from the usual standard with the result that her Laser Run time was 3rd-slowest in the field. Still, it would be hazardous to rule her out.
SEMI-FINAL A
The first athlete to impress on the Fencing piste was Wu (CHN), delighting the crowd and her coaching team with some accurate counter-strikes to eliminate Rita Erdos (HUN) and then No.2 seed Emma Whitaker (GBR).
Three of the competition favourites – Guzi (HUN), Jurt (SUI) and Bryson (GBR) – progressed to the Top 8 before Jana Attia (EGY) defeated her team-mate Zeina Amer (EGY) 5-2. Jurt (SUI) then halted the run of Wu (CHN) but Zhang (CHN) fared better against Ludovica Montecchia of Italy. Bryson (GBR) looked impenetrable at the top but Guzi (HUN) failed to register a touch against the impressive Attia (EGY).
Into the Top 4, there was a major upset as Zhang (CHN) suddenly found the key to unlock Bryson (GBR), using her superior reach to score an impressive 5-1 success. Again the priority seemed to be irrelevant as Attia (EGY) moved 2-0 up against Jurt (SUI), only for the Pentathlon World Cup Final winner to come back and prevail 3-2 to the delight of her sisters in the crowd.
The Top 2 finale really ebbed and flowed, and with Jurt (SUI) 3-2 up with 15sec to go, it still hung in the balance but Jurt (SUI) delivered a counter to move two clear. Zhang (CHN) hit back but lost out in pursuit of the equalising touch, finally losing 3-5.
There was immediate drama in Obstacle Racing as Erdos (HUN) failed to establish a grip on Tilting Ladders and hit the mat. Coline Flavin of France impressed in the second heat with a fluent 28.06sec, but her team-mate Rebecca Castaudi (FRA) also encountered problems on Tilting Ladders. A thrilling race between Amer (EGY) and Whitaker (GBR) then saw the Egyptian record a 28.99.
Several athletes including Guzi (HUN) seemed happy not to over-exert, following a policy of damage limitation, but sometimes the damage was unavoidable. In the penultimate heat, Bryson (GBR) touched the mat just short of the end of Flying Hoops and given her lack of speed on the course, plummeted down the standings.
The athlete racing beside her had the opposite experience. There is no doubt Egypt is leading the way in Pentathlon Obstacle Racing and Attia (EGY) showed a high level of technique and athleticism as she moved smoothly across every obstacle, dashing up the Finish Wall for an untouchable 26.66sec, just 1sec off the new world record set by Khalil (EGY) in Qualification.
In the final heat, Jurt (SUI) came from behind to beat Zhang (CHN) to the buzzer as both gathered enough points to retain their prominence in the all-important top nine.
The third Swimming heat saw Guzi (HUN) and Whitaker (GBR) finish first in almost identical times under 1:02 to fortify their positions, but Attia (EGY) also strengthened her grip on top spot with a 1:02.55. The quickest swimmer overall was Zhang (CHN) in 1:01.10.
It all meant that Attia (EGY) would start Laser Run 10sec clear of Zhang (CHN), with five athletes – Guzi (HUN), Whitaker (GBR), Wu (CHN) and Jurt (SUI) – within half a minute of the leader and Flavin (FRA) holding 9th but knowing that Laura Heredia of Spain and Gnedtchik (BLR) would likely come from behind.
This Laser Run was an irresistible watch. As expected, Heredia (ESP) and Gnedtchik (BLR) quickly moved themselves into the qualification spots but Whitaker (GBR) was clearly feeling the pressure, shooting 29sec, 32sec and 20sec at the first three visits to the range. She twice had to overtake Flavin (FRA) on the course to remain in the top nine.
The pressure was also on Montecchia (ITA), Flavin (FRA) and Amer (EGY), with threats appearing in the shape of Irene Prampolini (ITA), Lucie Hlavackova of Czechia and, incredibly, Bryson (GBR). At the front, Guzi (HUN) and Jurt (SUI) inherited the lead from Attia (EGY) while Zhang (CHN) and Xu (CHN) consolidated their positions beautifully.
In the crucial final circuit, Attia (EGY) found herself drawn into the battle along with team-mate Amer (EGY), and surprisingly Heredia (ESP) exited the range in 10th place. The Spaniard had no problem re-establishing herself, and Attia (EGY) also bit back against Bryson (GBR), but Amer (EGY) had run out of energy now, and Bryson (GBR) was able to complete her comeback in the searing heat, looking over her shoulder to check she was safe before collapsing at the finish line.
A time of 11:22.83 – better even than the 11:28.62 of Gnedtchik (BLR) – was testament to the remarkable character and fitness of the British champion athlete.
SEMI-FINAL B
Top seeds Viktoriia Sazonova of Russia and Aurora Tognetti (ITA) were immediately on top of their game, with only one touch conceded between them in the Top 16. A thrilling battle ensued between Seong (KOR) and Hureyeva (BLR), finally won 4-5 against the priority by Hureyeva (BLR). Khalil (EGY) then announced herself on the competition with a whitewash of Olivia Green (GBR).
The Top 8 saw another exhibition of accomplished Fencing from the favourites, Tognetti (ITA) winning 5-1, Sazonova (RUS) 5-2 and Khalil (EGY) 5-4 after a series of double touches against Karolina Krenkova (CZE). Hureyeva (BLR) upset Catherine Mayran Oliver of Mexico to set up a Top 4 battle with Sazonova (RUS), and she broke into a 4-3 lead before a final double touch saw a hectic fight settled in 29sec.
Khalil (EGY), competing against the head for the first time, won a tight contest with Tognetti (ITA) 4-3 to set up a decider against Hureyeva (BLR). At the halfway point, Hureyeva (BLR) edged in front and she kept her accuracy intact in the contact to prevail 5-4.
In Obstacle Racing, Mathilde Derval (FRA) was first to break 30sec with a fluent run, quickly overshadowed by Valentina Martinescu (ITA, 29.10) who completed the Rings in two swings as Green (GBR) had to recover from an early slip alongside her.
Ozyuksel (TUR) displayed her steady improvement in the discipline with a competitive 30.80, as other athletes continued to struggle, especially on the Tilting Ladders.
Tognetti (ITA) followed in the footsteps of team-mate Martinescu (ITA) with a similar approach to also break 30sec, paving the way for Khalil (EGY) to show them all how it can be done. The 15-year-old fell short of her world-record Qualification time but a 26.72 was mightily impressive, especially in the way she completed the three-stage Flying Hoops in constant forward motion. Beside her, Hureyeva (BLR) stayed in 2nd place overall with a 32.5.
In Swimming, Green (GBR) mounted a bid to revive her Super Sunday chances – having seen Bryson (GBR) come from behind earlier – with an opening 1:01.86. The tall Martinescu (ITA) was even more impressive in the second heat, touching first in 1:00.31 just ahead of Alisa Melikhova (RUS).
The third heat was even closer in a three-way between Tognetti (ITA), Arol (BLR) and Khalil (EGY), each timing 1:01 to ensure they would start Laser Run in strong contention.
Khalil (EGY) took a 16sec advantage into the final discipline, with Tognetti (ITA) next to go with a 7-10sec cushion over Hureyeva (BLR) and Sazonova (RUS), followed by Martinescu (ITA).
Unfortunately for the Italian duo, the energy-sapping conditions seemed to be a detrimental factor as Martinescu (ITA) was unable to resist the rush from behind, and finally the marauding pack caught up with Tognetti (ITA) too.
Early on it was Derval (FRA) who came under pressure from Melikhova (RUS), and at the halfway stage it was clear that Elgindy (EGY) was going to have a say in the outcome. But who else might get involved? The second half of the race was dominated by Clark (GBR) and Aleksandravice (LTU), who rolled back the years as she coasted past numerous rivals. Remarkably, Clark (GBR) advanced eight positions, Aleksandravice (LTU) seven positions and Elgindy (EGY) an astonishing 13 positions as they finished 4th, 5th and 7th respectively.
Up front, the Belarusians managed their race beautifully and crossed the finish line together in pole position, but there were alarm bells at the shooting range for both Ozyuksel (TUR) and Khalil (EGY), who could only finish 8th in the end, 12sec out of danger as Blanka Bauer (HUN) failed by 5sec to catch the final qualifier, Derval (FRA).
WATCH AND FOLLOW
The UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Championships take place from August 24-30, with livestream of the Finals available to watch free on YouTube based on the following schedule (TV start times listed in Central European Summer Time):
Sunday August 30
- Men’s Final (07:00)
- Women’s Final (10:30)
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