Next month, Egypt will play host to the modern pentathlon World Cup at Al-Shams Club in Cairo. Inas Mazhar introduces the little-known sport The story of the modern pentathlon goes back to the 19th century when a young French cavalry officer was sent on horseback to deliver a message. He rode across the uneven terrain, through enemy lines, and was confronted by a soldier with his sword drawn. Challenged to a duel, the officer won, only to have his horse shot out from under him by another enemy soldier. After felling that soldier with a single shot, the officer ran on. He swam across a raging river, and then finally he delivered the message. So, legend has it, was born the modern pentathlon. The brainchild of Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympic Games, the event was based upon the unlucky officer and introduced into the Stockholm Games of 1912. Only remotely resembling the ancient pentathlon inspired by the warmongering Spartans, modern pentathletes shoot, fence, swim, compete in show jumping and run -- five events testing endurance as well as athletic versatility. The ancient pentathlon became an Olympic sport with the addition of wrestling in 708 BC and included the following: running contests, jumping, using stone or lead weights to increase the distance of the jump, discuss throw and javelin throw where athletes attached a thong (leather strap) that formed a loop, at the centre of gravity of the javelin, to make the grip more secure and stabilise the javelin in flight. Wrestling was highly valued as a form of military exercise without weapons. It ended only when one of the contestants admitted defeat. Boxing was added to the Games in 688 BC where boxers wrapped straps (himantes) around their hands to strengthen their wrists and steady their fingers. Pankration was added to the Games in 648 BC. It was a primitive form of martial art combining wrestling and boxing, and was considered to be one of the toughest sports. Equestrian events included horse races and chariot races and took place in the Hippodrome, a wide, level, open space. The pentathlon represented the climax of the Games then as the winner received the title of "Victor Ludorum" and had to proclaim a poem about his victory to the spectators. Admiration for the ancient pentathlon was fully shared by De Coubertin, and he expressed his support for the concept of a pentathlon most eloquently and forcefully in his Memoires Olympiques published in 1931. From 1909, he tried to have the event re-introduced into the Olympic programme and after two failed attempts, pentathlon's moment came at the 19th meeting of the International Olympic Committee in Budapest (HUN) when as the Baron stated: "The Holy Ghost of sport illuminated my colleagues and they accepted a competition to which I attach great importance". De Coubertin founded the modern pentathlon believing the event would test a man or a woman's moral qualities as much as his physical resources and skills, thereby producing the ideal, complete athlete, says president of the Egyptian and Arab Sports Federations Ahmed Nasser, a former international champion of the sport. "So, it is a true sport of the Olympic Games, and reflects the ideals embodied by the Olympic movement." The modern pentathlon is an Olympic sport which consists of competition in five events in one gruelling day. Competitors earn points for their performances in each of the five disciplines: pistol shooting, epee fencing, swimming, riding (equestrian show jumping) and cross-country running. "The events have changed somewhat since 1912. The equestrian event, originally a 5,000-metre cross-country ride against time, is now a 400-metre stadium jumping course," Nasser said. The swimming event has been cut from 300 metres to 200 metres, the cross-country running event from 4,000 metres to 3,000 metres. The shooting event, originally a 22-caliber pistol shot from 25 metres at a turning target, has become a 10-metre air pistol shot at a stationary target. Fencing is a series of one-touch bouts with épée swords. As in 1912, the fencing portion of the modern pentathlon is a round robin-tournament, with a single touch deciding each match. The competition originally took place over a five-day period, with a single event on each day. Beginning in 1984, the pistol shooting and cross-country run were both conducted on the fourth and final day. Since 1996, all five events have taken place on a single day. The total points scored in the first four events determine the starting order for the final event, turning the cross- country running into a handicap event. The leading competitor sets off first and the intervals between that competitor and those who follow is determined by the points difference between them. Scoring was originally based on a competitor's placing in the various events, with the lowest score winning. It's now based on a scoring table similar to the one used in track and field for the decathlon. Standards are set for each event and a competitor receives 1,000 points for equalling the standard. Points are added if the standard is exceeded and subtracted if the performance falls below the standard. Because of this handicapping system, the first three competitors to cross the line at the end of the run fill the gold, silver and bronze medal positions. "The modern pentathlon is a true representation of the Olympic movement. The five Olympic rings are reflected in modern pentathlon's five events and participation from all five continents," Nasser said. De Coubertin knew the event would appeal to the military and he felt it would help foster peace by ensuring the world's soldiers could engage in friendly competition. Not surprisingly, it was the military which most enthusiastically adopted this new sport with its inherent demands of courage, coordination, physical fitness, self- discipline and flexibility in ever-changing circumstances. The modern pentathlon was originally dominated by the Swedes. Since World War II the Hungarians and the Russians have become the top athletes. Scoring was originally done by a points-for-place system with the lowest score winning, but since 1956 the competition has been scored using points tables for each of the five events. In the US, the Army was entirely responsible for the development of modern pentathletes through its training centre at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Civilians were invited to enter the Olympic trials at the centre for the first time in 1956. Today, both men and women, competing separately, complete all five events of the modern pentathlon in one day. A points system for each event is based on a standard performance earning 1,000 points. The winner is the pentathlete who has accumulated the most points after the five events and crosses the finish line first.
