UIPM Secretary General’s Message: We are ready!

Several days after leaving Budapest, we are still catching our breath.

The latest Pentathlon World Cup event in the capital of Hungary was not just a great event – it was a historical milestone.

We treasure the moment that the President of the International Olympic Committee joined us to watch the Women’s Final on June 12, joined by dozens of IOC Members and National Olympic Committee leaders from across Europe – not to mention a passionate and noisy crowd in the BOK Sports Centre.

They witnessed how the sport of Pentathlon has evolved, how hard our athletes have worked to master new challenges and contribute to the development of the ‘show’.

We believe that what our visitors saw might not be what they had expected. It was all about putting on a competition that could address or modify perceptions and earn recognition for a decade or more of continuous innovation.

The new Pentathlon was validated by the seamless operation of several new features:

• 90-minute format
• direct elimination in Fencing
• 70m sprint Obstacle racing
• 100m sprint Swimming
• … all backed up by the perennial thrill of our Laser Run showstopper.

The visiting IOC Members and EOC delegates present gave overwhelmingly positive feedback during the competition and afterwards.

Pentathletes from all over the world delivered fantastic performances throughout the week, and the Women’s Final watched by the international VIP group certainly provided very strong evidence that:

• Pentathlon is competitive, entertaining and visually compelling
• Our athletes are the best ambassadors of our sport’s transformation.

Budapest was a turning point, but now it becomes a new start line. It was a statement of UIPM’s intent and direction of travel.  

We are ready for the journey we need to take. Ready to grow and to flourish.

We have demonstrated the value of our sport.

But we have limitless possibilities ahead of us, with many more athletes and audiences to engage.

We have come a long way, thanks to our fantastic community stepping up and embracing the evolution of the sport. Now it’s time to press the accelerator and generate more interest in participation and attract more support for Pentathlon’s exciting future.

We are ready, so join us!