Sunwoo Kim And Changwan Seo combined to achieve an excellent effect Korea Gold in the mixed relay as a dramatic Sunday raised the curtain on an unforgettable UIPM 2023 Pentathlon World Cup Budapest.
A day after the world records were shattered in the individual finals in the Hungarian capital, the third stage of the UIPM Pentathlon World Cup 2023 season held even more excitement. Korea (Kim/Seo) clinched victory after their closest pursuers Mexico (Mariana Arceo & Manuel Padilla) experienced the tragedy at the crucial moment before settling for silver. The young France team of Rebecca Castaudi And Jean Baptiste Mourciaboth former World Junior Champions, raced through the field for Bronze after starting the Laser Run in seventh place, over 30 seconds back.
The drama reached final spin in the Laser Run as Seo (KOR) and Padilla (MEX) both exited the shooting range head-to-head. However, Padilla got her feet caught in a pocket and could only watch as Seo (KOR) sped away to take Korea’s second gold medal of the weekend.
Great Britain (Olivia Green & Henry Choong) held the lead at times during the climax of the Laser Run, but settled for a slim margin in fourth place Germany (Annika Zillekens & Dominik Olejarz) with Egypt (Amira Kandil & Eslam Hamad) in the sixth.
Fittingly, it was a convincing and international conclusion to the third World Cup of the 2023 season, with three different continents among the medals and a total of 14 teams from five continents, lifting the curtain on a brilliant week of action in Budapest.
Reaction of the medal winners
gold medalist Changwan Seo (KOR) said: “It was a very tough competition today, but a great one (win). We got lucky with the Laser Run and feel a little sympathy for the Mexican team. But we are so happy. It’s a good feeling.” His teammate Sunwoo Kim (KOR) added: “In Korea we value the team and have a lot of support. That is why we have a strong team.”
Silver Medalist Manuel Padilla (MEX) On the last lap he reflected on his misfortune: “I don’t know exactly what happened, I just started running and I felt something on my feet. When I looked down there was something of a bag between my feet so I stopped to get it out and lost my chance at gold. I’m a little frustrated but the good thing is that we had three relays this year and we got a medal in each relay.” His teammate Mariana Arceo (MEX) added: “I’m happy and sad, but I’m happy to have three medals at a World Championships this year!”
Bronze Medalist Jean Baptiste Mourcia (FRA) said: “When we got to the Laser Run we knew we could do something with it because Rebecca is a fantastic runner and shooter. Me too! I think we did a good job. There were some guys in front of us who might have had a hard time shooting and we benefited from that. We are very happy. His teammate Rebecca Castaudi (FRA) said: “We are so happy. Thank you to our coaches and staff. Thank you beaucoup!
Ride
In keeping with a week of impressive performances on horseback, the vast majority of teams achieved high scores in the Equestrian discipline, keeping things tight at the top.
The Japanese duo of Misaki Uchida And Ryō Matsumoto were clean and fast to become the only team to earn maximum points. However, there were many more that were near perfect.
The teams from Hungary (Sarolta Simon & Adam Marosi)France (Castaudi/Mourcia), Korea (Kim/Seo) and Mexico (Arceo/Padilla) led the pursuit, all scoring points of 290 or more. The first leaders on the joint first place were the duo from Sweden (Marlena Jawaid & Daniel Steinbock) who competed with their co-leaders with a score of 291, only that Germany (Zillekens/Olejarz) could top it with 292.
The Chinese team of Yufei Bian And Yuzhang was unfortunate to be the only team eliminated from the riding but they recovered in impressive style.
fencing
After Germany (Zillekens/Olejarz) and Sweden (Jawaid/Steinbock) dominated the fencing rankings, the home favorites Simon and Marosi offered the Hungarian fans a spectacular show on the piste in the fencing bonus round.
They accumulated 18 bonus points to move up the field, but they weren’t the only ones enjoying the bonus round Estonian team of Johanna Maria Jogisu And Carl Robert Kallaste added six points to their tally.
Bathe
The pool performance of British couple Green and Choong was all too evident as they set the fastest time in the swimming event with 1:54.86 and won the second heat.
But at the front of the race, the Swedes (Jawaid/Steinbock) proved once again that they belong as they won the final heat with the second fastest time of the day (01:56.22) to secure the Laser Run lead.
In the first run, China (Bian/Zhang) showed an excellent swimming performance themselves, which turned out to be the third fastest overall time with 01:56.56. A rare false start penalty cost that Brazil team of Isabela Abreu And Danilo Fagundes.
laser run
With Sunday’s rains forecast for Budapest finally hitting in the minutes before the Laser Run peaked, the slippery conditions would potentially be a factor in deciding where the medals would go.
Their group performances ensured Sweden (Jawaid/Steinbock) had an 11 second lead over Mexico (Arceo/Padilla), followed by Germany (Zillekens/Olejarz), Great Britain (Green/Choong), Korea (Kim/Seo) and Hungary (Simon). /Marosi) all within 25 seconds and striking distance. France (Castaudi/Mourcia) were one place down but would also be quite capable of closing the gap.
When the women first hit the shooting range, it got dramatically close. Competing in a UIPM event for the first time since 2021, Zillekens (GER) had taken the lead while Green (GBR) was in the chase and Jawaid valiantly tried to keep Sweden involved.
With just three seconds between the top five in the field, Kim (KOR) took the lead on the second standing while Arceo (MEX) was also accurate on the range. But the lead changed quickly and at the change it was Green who sent off his British team-mate Choong first, followed by Seo (KOR) and Padilla (MEX).
Experience would prove crucial as pursuers passed Choong (GBR) on the first standing stage and Mourcia also continued France’s remarkable rise up the leaderboard.
The final shot seemed crucial and with both Seo (KOR) and Padilla (MEX) giving five green lights almost simultaneously, it looked like a sprint finish was about to come. Disaster struck at this point for Padilla (MEX) when he got his feet caught in a sack on the shooting range and lost almost six seconds trying to get free.
As it was, Seo (KOR) was quickly ahead and possibly impossible to overtake. Padilla (MEX) fought valiantly for a third straight team relay silver medal win and Mourcia (FRA) took a brilliant bronze ahead of Choong (GBR). Olejarz (GER) was fifth, just ahead of Hamad (EGY), who finished strongly.
President’s reaction
UIPM President Dr. Klaus Schorman said: “If you look at this UIPM Pentathlon World Cup season, this was the strongest mixed relay field to date – and it showed.
“I’m really pleased that so many nations are nominating their strongest athletes and we were rewarded with a brilliant competition today.”
“Above all, the organisation, selection and presentation of the horses here in Budapest was outstanding.
“Mexico was a bit unlucky at the end today but seeing the reaction and the spirit and seeing how much the athletes enjoy competing as a team reinforces my belief that team spirit is important in our sport. I’m sure we’ll see.” Similar in Sofia.
“We have a long tradition of coming to Budapest and meeting volunteers and committed people who are themselves former athletes, world champions and Olympic champions.
“There is always such strong support here from the Hungarian Modern Pentathlon Society and from high-level officials from government, sport and business. Thank you all for a fantastic week.”
Watch and follow
The UIPM 2023 Pentathlon World Cup Budapest has now ended, however video highlights can be seen on UIPM.TV and the results can be found on the UIPM website and via the UIPM Central app.
The next competition on the calendar is the UIPM 2023 Pentathlon World Cup Sofia, taking place from May 9th to 14th in the Bulgarian capital. The final of the UIPM 2023 Pentathlon World Cup will be held in Ankara (TUR) at the end of May.
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