UIPM 2019 Pentathlon and Laser Run World Championships: Mexico strike first in Women’s Relay

Last year Mexico hosted the UIPM Pentathlon World Championships in the capital Mexico City and the positive vibes seem to have been reverberating ever since.

In April Manuel Padilla (MEX) won a breakthrough gold at UIPM Pentathlon World Cup Sofia, and in July Mariana Arceo (MEX) became Pan American champion in Lima (PER) and qualified for the Tokyo Olympics.

Today, Arceo (MEX) savoured that golden feeling once again as she joined Mayan Oliver in winning the Women’s Relay on day one of the UIPM Pentathlon and Laser Run World Championships.

The Mexican duo started the Laser Run in third place but pushed Kim Unju and Jeong Mina of Korea back into bronze and then overtook hosts Hungary, consigning Luca Barta and Kamilla Reti to silver.

MEDALLISTS’ REACTION

Arceo (MEX) said: “I think every discipline was fine, it was good, and I am very happy because the competition all around us was very hard and strong.

“The Pan American Games was successful for me because of the Olympic qualification, and I am very happy to be here competing at the World Championships.”

Her team-mate Oliver (MEX) added: “I am really happy with the work we’ve done with our coaches and with my team-mates. I’m very excited.”

The two Hungary teams benefited from the backing of a home crowd inside the specially constructed Pentathlon Arena at Kencsem Park.

Barta (HUN) said: “I think we are really happy. We didn’t expect the silver medal and I think we gave our best today. It was incredible.

“It’s very important that we are at home, and the crowd was very supportive in every discipline, especially the Laser Run.”

Reti (HUN) added: “All our events were good today, especially Fencing. Now I’m looking forward to taking part in the Laser Run World Championships later in the week.”

 

SWIMMING

The 2019 World Championships began with an incredibly intense swimming battle in the temporary pool installed in the field of play at Kincsem Park, where nine teams scored between 300 and 304 points.

Zhang Mingyu and Gu Yewen of China managed the fastest time (2:03.07), narrowly quicker than the world junior champions, Adelina Ibatullina and Kseniia Fraltsova of Russia (2:03.19) and the Ireland duo of Kate Coleman Lenehan and Eilidh Prise (2:03.66).

FENCING

The Fencing Ranking Round was dominated by three nations, with Korea (Kim/Jeong) emerging on top with 32V/16D and another two points added in the Bonus Round.

Hungary (Barta/Reti) and Mexico (Oliver/Arceo) each managed 30V/18D, with the home team inspiring hope of a medal among the home supporters.

RIDING

There was euphoria in the stands as Hungary (Barta/Reti) scored the best round of the day, an exceptional 297 points with only three time penalties conceded.

Mexico (Oliver/Arceo) also stayed in contention for the world title with an excellent 291 and Ireland (Coleman Lenehan/Prise) moved up four places from 8th to 4th overall with 288.

Korea (Kim/Jeong) also ensured their good Fencing work would not to go to waste as they scored 283 alongside the Czech Republic duo of Barbora Ciprova and Karolina Krenkova.

LASER RUN

Hungary (Barta/Reti) started first but with only a 2secs advantage over Korea (Kim/Jeong), with Mexico (Oliver/Arceo) a further 11secs behind.

Mexico (Oliver/Arceo) seized the day with an excellent 12:58.23 that saw them home in first place with a 9sec margin over Hungary (Barta/Reti), while Korea (Kim/Jeong) made sure nobody could deny them bronze.

Ireland (Coleman Lenehan/Prise), who won European silver in 2018, finished 4th after holding off a strong bid by the second-string Hungary duo Sarolta Simon and Blanka Guzi, whose time of 12:54.92 was the fastest of the day.

PRESIDENT’S REACTION

UIPM President Dr Klaus Schormann said: “It is wonderful to be in beautiful capital city of Budapest for one of the most important competitions in the long history of our sporting movement.

“On the first day of competition we saw a very competitive Women’s Relay with excellent performances from many countries. It is always very pleasing to see three continents represented on the podium as it proves that we are a global sport.

“We are looking forward to another high-quality day of Pentathlon tomorrow with the Men’s Relay, before the individual competitions begin on Wednesday. We are also very excited about the Laser Run racing which will begin on Friday, having been incorporated into the Pentathlon World Championships for the first time in the history of our Union.”

 

WATCH AND FOLLOW

The Pentathlon World Championships is being televised live or ‘as live’ in 144 countries, with a total of 133 hours of coverage secured by TV networks. This amounts to a total potential reach of 431 million homes.

Check out which TV network is showing the UIPM 2019 Pentathlon World Championships in your country!

On each finals day you can watch a live stream of the Fencing Bonus Round, Riding, Laser Run and the medal ceremony on UIPM TV and YouTube, with no geographical restrictions. The Laser Run and medal ceremony can also be watched live on Facebook.

Follow World Pentathlon on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for additional content, and visit the UIPM website or download the “UIPM Central” app to keep track of results.

 

COMPETITION SCHEDULE

The UIPM 2019 Pentathlon World Championships continue on Tuesday, September 3 with the Men’s Relay and conclude on Sunday, September 8 with the Mixed Relay.

Spectators attending on the three finals days (September 6-8) will have the bonus of seeing the UIPM Laser Run World Championships during the early part of the day.

Tickets can be bought at the official event website.

 

UIPM 2019 Pentathlon World Championships schedule

(* live stream on UIPM TV)

September 2: Women’s Relay

September 3: Men’s Relay

September 4: Women’s Qualification

September 5: Men’s Qualification | Women’s Final Fencing Ranking Round

September 6: Women’s Final* | Men’s Final Fencing Ranking Round

September 7: Men’s Final*

September 8: Mixed Relay*

 

UIPM 2019 Laser Run World Championships schedule

September 6: Women’s Final

September 7: Men’s Final

September 8: Mixed Relay

Rank	Team	Nation	MP Points
1	ARCEO Mariana OLIVER Mayan	MEX	1338
2	RETI Kamilla BARTA Luca	HUN	1329
3	KIM Unju JEONG Mina	KOR	1326
4	COLEMAN LENEHAN Kate PRISE Eilidh	IRL	1305
5	GUZI Blanka SIMON Sarolta	HUN	1303
6	CIPROVA Barbora KRENKOVA Karolina	CZE	1285
7	IBATULLINA Adelina FRALTSOVA Kseniia	RUS	1281
8	ZHANG Mingyu GU Yewen	CHN	1271
9	MORSY Haydy ABDELMAKSOUD Salma	EGY	1253
10	FOLLETT Charlie GREEN Olivia	GBR	1191
11	HENDRICK Heidi ACHTERBERG Samantha	USA	1177
12	SCHLEU Annika LANGREHR Rebecca	GER	979
13	TOGNETTI Francesca RINAUDO ALICE	ITA	519