UIPM 2019 Global Laser Run City Tour: Athletes earn their wings at Air Force University in Kharkiv (UKR)

Few countries have embraced the Global Laser Run City Tour as readily as Ukraine, and the last instalment of another busy year of events took place in Kharkiv on September 29.

Racing took place at the military campus of the Kharkiv National Air Force University and 254 athletes came from six regions of Ukraine to take part, brushing off the challenge of high winds.

At the opening ceremony, University Rector Gen Turinskyy Oleksandr described Laser Run as one of the best competition formats not only for athletes but also for the military students. He said: “You can practise all necessary skills by taking part in Pentathlon and Laser Run.”

Khristoev Victor, regional head of the National Olympic Committee, added: “Modern Pentathlon is a very good sport for all seasons and for all ages.”

Gariachev Anatoly, the head of the local organising committee, thanked UIPM and the Ukraine Modern Pentathlon Federation for their support and said: “Because of the big efforts of UIPM, more and more people are joining the Pentathlon family at every competition.

“Now the number of young pentathletes in Kharkiv is very big because of the new and attractive format of Laser Run.”

The GLRCT in Kharkiv followed similarly successful instalments in Kiev, Dnipro, Zhitomir and Lviv earlier in 2019.

The Global Laser Run City Tour was created in 2017 to provide an entry point to UIPM Sports for people of all ages in urban communities around the world.

Another 100 cities were selected in 2019 as hosts of the GLRCT or the Biathle-Triathle National Tour. The full calendar can be viewed at the UIPM website, where you can also find more information on UIPM’s various multi-discipline sports.

In September, the UIPM Laser Run World Championships was incorporated into the Pentathlon World Championships for the first time in Budapest (HUN), where Laser Run also featured as a showcase sport at the 1st World Urban Games.

In December, Laser Run and Triathle will both feature for the first time in the 30th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in the Philippines.

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