UIPM President confident and optimistic for future of modern pentathlon

The sport of modern pentathlon has been a Summer Olympic fixture for well over a century, since Stockholm 1912, but its Olympic future has come into question in the past few years. The sport’s crystal ball became very murky after the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games after a German coach punched a horse that refused to jump. She was sent home from Japan and the sport’s governing body the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) was left to pick up the pieces after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) left the sport off their preliminary program for LA28.

All was not lost though, as the IOC left the door open for a return to the Olympic post-Paris 2024. UIPM President Dr. Klaus Schormann and his federation announced a new fifth discipline, obstacle, to replace horse riding, and efforts to modernize the sport were undertaken as well.

Has it been enough to sway the IOC and earn a ticket back to the Olympics? Schormann believes so. He spoke exclusively with Around the Rings and spoke enthusiastically about obstacle’s role in revolutionizing the sport.

ATR: In choosing a new 5th discipline to replace horse riding, you must have considered dozens of potential sporting options. What stood out about the obstacle that made it the choice?

Schormann: Absolutely. The New 5th Discipline Working Group considered and debated 62 proposals in total. Among those: climbing, javelin throw, long jump, orienteering and cyclo-cross were also considered. Following a three-stage scoring process, in May 2022, the UIPM Executive Board unanimously – with one abstention – selected obstacle discipline for testing after the presentation of two proposals by the Working Group, which had rigorously followed the 13 established criteria.

Obstacle discipline offers a huge opportunity to transform modern pentathlon into one of the most popular, exciting and accessible sports in the Olympic Games. Obstacle sport is well and truly global, because it is easily accessible for young athletes everywhere. One billion people in more than 160 countries are consuming obstacle competition broadcasts. There are hundreds of millions of views on social media platforms each year. This change will help to advance the IOC’s ongoing efforts to modernize the Olympic sport program to reach more fans in more places around the world.

ATR: Had the incident with German coach Kim Raisner hitting a horse in Tokyo 2020 not happened, would the UIPM have moved as quickly to replace horse riding?

Schormann: The Tokyo situation was a terrible incident, unacceptable and completely abnormal in modern pentathlon. The UIPM cares deeply about the welfare of the horses in our sport.

Conversations and discussions with the IOC and Olympic stakeholders have been taking place for many years – it became very clear that UIPM must dramatically change modern pentathlon to remain relevant and retain our place on the Olympic program. One of the main drivers was to create a new fan base and a new era for the sport.  By introducing obstacle discipline in place of riding, we aim to create one of the most popular, exciting and accessible sports in the Games.

ATR: By all accounts obstacle has been mostly well-received by competitors. How nervous were you about the feedback from the test events?

Schormann: All the previous work carried out by the New 5th Discipline Working Group meant we were very confident going into the testing phase. And because of the detailed planning by everyone involved, the comprehensive testing phase of obstacle discipline was very well received.

The results of surveys we conducted and published on the UIPM website from participating athletes in Ankara, Manila, Lignano Sabbiadoro and Zielona Gora, was overwhelmingly positive.

In total, almost 300 pentathletes and 100 obstacle athletes from around the world trained and raced on the four bespoke courses, which comprised 28 unique obstacles. An official questionnaire resulted in the following participant feedback:

• 88% of pentathletes were satisfied or very satisfied with the overall Test Event experience
  
• 82% of pentathletes were satisfied or very satisfied with the enjoyment of the competition
  
• 72% of pentathletes were satisfied or very satisfied with the attractiveness of Obstacle design to global audiences and youth.

ATR: Boxing and weightlifting have also been temporarily removed from the LA28 program. Both of those sports are in various states of chaos with regards to doping and governance issues. Do their problems make it easier or harder for modern pentathlon to regain IOC acceptance?

Schormann: In all honesty, we are 100% focused only on what we need to do. We are full of energy and determination because we know that obstacle discipline has the potential to not only save our sport, but to make it one of the most popular and appealing on the Olympic program, with some of the highest TV and social media ratings, and unlimited growth potential.

ATR: As a young modern pentathlete do you think you would’ve enjoyed the obstacle discipline if it was a part of modern pentathlon?

Schormann: I competed for nine years in international modern pentathlon competitions and I always try to keep a young mindset because it’s so important to take care of the next generations. Having seen the joy of young athletes competing in our test events, especially in Lignano Sabbiadoro where they all wanted to get back on the course and race again and again, I can understand clearly why this new discipline will attract more young people to our sport, both as participants and fans.

ATR: With a focus on younger fans and athletes, what region of the globe do you consider the biggest potential market for the “new” modern pentathlon?

Schormann: As a global movement, we will always look to develop our multi-sports and provide opportunities across all continents for people to experience the joy of sport at the level they choose. But it’s also important to make the Olympic Games as accessible as possible and create pathways for everyone to fulfill their dreams. In the past nine months since obstacle discipline was selected for testing, we have already heard from many nations expressing a new level of intent and feeling more confident about the potential to develop modern pentathlon in their country.

There is clear growth potential in Oceania, Asia and the Caribbean, but Africa is our top priority, because so far we were only able to have two countries (Egypt and South Africa) competing across all five disciplines of our sport. Obstacle is a game-changer for Africa, and the timing is right because we are already very focused on making the most of the opportunity provided by the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026.

ATR: If the worst case scenario happens and the IOC does not approve of modern pentathlon in the LA28 Olympic program, what are the next steps for the UIPM?

Schormann: The reality is that the only thing we can control is the process, and we have taken many steps already to address the IOC’s priorities for LA28, and we are always staying in very close contact with the Sport Department. We listened and acted by undertaking one of the most transformative changes in the history of Olympic sport. Obstacle racing is truly global and truly accessible for young athletes everywhere, as you can see from these statistics:

1. 30,000 permanent obstacle courses and training gyms worldwide plus 100,000s of obstacle ‘playgrounds’.
   
2. More than 20 million obstacle course racers of all ages worldwide.
   
3. 250k people apply to compete on obstacle race shows each year, 70K in the US alone.
   
4. 1 billion people in more than 160 countries have access to obstacle competition broadcasts.
   
5. Hundreds of millions of views on social media platforms each year.
   
6. 300 million people watch Adventure Race TV shows held in 90 countries.