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MODERN PENTATHLON
Background
The Modern Pentathlon was created by the founder of the modern Olympic Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertain. His inspiration to create the sport came from 19th century cavalry soldiers who may have had to fence, swim, ride, run and shoot. In the Pentathlon practiced in the ancient Olympics, the goal was to have athletes show all their physical skills, while in the Modern Pentathlon the idea is to develop an even more comprehensive sport. With that being said, swimming and running test physical development, shooting works the mental aspect, fencing is important in developing adaptability and riding is a combination of adaptability, personal control and courage, considering athletes only know what horse they will ride just hours before the contest.
The Pentathlon was first contested at the Olympic Games in Sweden, in 1912. From 1912 until 1980, the Olympic Modern Pentathlon competition was held over five days with one event per day. In 1984, the first alteration was made and the contest’s duration changed to four days. This format was used until Barcelona Olympic Games (1992). In the Atlanta Olympic Games (1996), the five events of the competition started taking place over a single day, with a total of 32 athletes.
In the Sydney Olympic Games (2000), two important changes were made. The most important change was the inclusion of women’s pentathlon. Another shift was the number of participants; 24 men and 24 women. In Athens (2004), the number of athletes rose to 32 in each category (men’s and women’s) and in Beijing (2008), there were 36 athletes in each category.
The Modern Pentathlon currently has over 90 federations in five continents. The sport is contested in a range of competitions around the world, such as in: the Asian Games, Pan-American Games and Central American and Caribbean Games. Coverage of and audience at Pentathlon events have been on the constant rise in the last few years due to the sport’s new format, in which all events take place on a single day. Pentathlon contests have been covered by both print and electronic media (the Web).
Considering all the characteristics of this sport, Modern Pentathlon has been called a true representation of the Olympic movement. The five Olympic rings are reflected in modern pentathlon's five events and its practice in all five continents.
Curious Facts about the Pentathlon
• Until today, the oldest athlete to win a gold medal in the Olympic Modern Pentathlon competition is a representative of the Former Soviet Union, Pavel Lednev. He was an Olympic Champion at age 37 and 122 days at the Moscow Olympic Games (1980).
• The oldest Olympic Record in Modern Pentathlon is held by Romanian athlete Cornel Vena in Melbourne (1956). Vena won 29 of 35 bouts, having lost only 6.
• The pentathlete with the largest number of Olympic gold medals is Andras Balczo, from Hungary, with three gold medals (1960, 1968 and 1972).
• The Australian athlete, Peter Macken, competed at five Olympic Games, making him the athlete with the largest number of appearances at Olympic Games.
• The American athlete Sheila Taormina was the first woman to compete in four consecutive Olympic Games in three different events: Swimming (1996), Triathlon (200 and 2004) and Modern Pentathlon (2008).
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