CAIRO - Egypt's teenage shooting star Aya Medany grabbed the gold medal in the fourth phase of the Modern Pentathlon World Cup, which was held in Hungary from May (5-8). "The final stages of the tournament witnessed fierce competition among 18 countries represented by nearly 40 athletes," Mohamed el-Demerdash Touni, president of the Egyptian Federation for the Modern Pentathlon (EFMP), said. The modern pentathlon is a sporting contest consisting of five events: pistol shooting, fencing, 200m freestyle swimming, show jumping and a 3km run. "In the world of modern pentathlon, with its variety of locations and unique competition style, a player can be great one day and bad the next," added Touni, who described Aya as wonderful. "She was like a machine on the firing range, coming in first place with 5,452 points.” The 22-year-old athlete also claimed the gold medal in the women's modern pentathlon competition in the 11th Pan-Arab Games held in Egypt in November 2007, as well as grabbing silver in the World Senior Championships last year in Budapest, Hungary. "Given what Aya has achieved, she's now even closer to qualifying for next year's Summer Olympic Games," Touni stressed. The Olympic Games will be held in London from July 27 to August 12, 2012. The golden girl, who tripped up in the pistol shooting competitions, affecting her final points tally, started her long journey in 1999 when she was only 11 years old. At this young age, she ranked 15th in the Junior European Pentathlon Championship, held in Poland. "Competitors earn points for their performance in each of the five events. The total points scored in the first four events determine the starting order for the final event," explained the official. Naturally, Touni wants his pentathletes to maintain their international standards. "We are now on top in the Arab and African championships," he said proudly. There are more than 90 national federations for the modern pentathlon throughout the five continents. In recent years, the number of countries and continents winning medals in the world championships has dramatically increased. The EFMP, established in 1975, joined the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) in 1976. "The EFMP has a broad plan for increasing the number of people practising this sport in Egypt,” added Touni, who said that the ideal adult age for the modern pentathlete is between 22 and 28. He also stressed that the EFMP was working hard to expand this sport all over Egypt.
