UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Cup Pazardzhik: Ozyuksel (TUR) claims long-awaited gold in Women’s Final
Patience paid off for one of the great pentathletes of her generation as Ilke Ozyuksel became the first-ever individual UIPM gold medallist from Türkiye in the Women’s Final at UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Cup Pazardzhik.
Three-time Olympian Ozyuksel (TUR) already had eight individual medals in her bag from a decade of accumulating hardware in the World Cup, World Cup Final and World Championships. But this was the first time she had stood atop the podium on her own, and consistency across all five disciplines was the key to her holding off world No.1 Blanka Guzi of Hungary.
Guzi (HUN) added silver to the gold she had won in the season-opener, but there was surprise around the identity of the third medallist, 18-year-old Ganah Elgindy holding her nerve in an intense and windswept Laser Run to bring joy to Egypt after a difficult start to the season for their team.
There was huge satisfaction in finishing on the extended podium for the returning Kerenza Bryson of Great Britian, individual neutral athlete Anastasiya Malashenoka, and Louison Cazaly of France – giving her team a boost with the Men’s Final still to come later in the day.
Fencing
There was remarkable drama from the outset of the Women’s Final. Both Guzi (HUN) and Lucie Hlavackova of Czechia made their way through the opening bouts to earn a shot against the top two seeds, both individual neutral athletes.
After a cagey start to the bout, Hlavackova (CZE) fenced beautifully to prevail 4-3 against Yana Soloveva (AIN), while Guzi (HUN) broke the deadlock against Viktoriia Sazonova (AIN) before the favourite fought back. With 1.8sec to go, Guzi (HUN) flew down the piste and managed to catch her rival with a decisive touch.
In the absence of the top two, British 3rd and 4th seeds Bryson and Charlie Follett had a chance to take advantage, and Bryson (GBR) took care of Ozyuksel (TUR) in her Top 8 bout, but Follett (GBR) was caught at the end by Elgindy (EGY), ending her run.
In the Top 4, Bryson (GBR) came through a terrific contest with Catherine Mayran Oliver of Mexico, while Elgindy (EGY) looked decisive in a 5-4 victory over Sumin Shin of Korea. There was nothing she could do in the Top 2, however, as Bryson (GBR) fenced with controlled aggression from the start of the final bout, and then defended well to come out on top by a 5-3 margin.
Obstacle
The 70m course had seen remarkable exploits and misadventures all week, and this was highlighted in the experience of two sisters from Switzerland in the Women’s Final. First, Katharina Jurt (SUI) set the standard with an exceptional 27.35sec in the opening heat to proper herself up the overall standings. In contrast, her Olympian sister Anna Jurt (SUI) slipped down badly after a fault.
There was an excellent race between Ozyuksel (TUR) and Hlavackova (CZE), timing 31.23 and 32.33 respectively, before Elgindy (EGY) finished on a high with 31.55. The British quest suffered a blow as Follett (GBR) faulted on the Giant Steps while Bryson (GBR), competing in the UIPM Obstacle racing discipline for the first time, battled to a 42.05 to at least remain in the top six.
Swimming
Guzi (HUN) and Shin (KOR) performed superbly in Swimming to move into prominent positions in the race for gold, recording the second and third-fastest times respectively either side of the 1min03sec mark. Malashenoka (AIN) was quickest across the 100m with an impressive 1:01.07.
The overall picture was fascinating with Shin (KOR) taking a narrow overall lead. But with two of the sport’s best Laser Runners only 2-3sec behind her, it was shaping up to be an epic battle between Ozyuksel (TUR) and Guzi (HUN), with Elgindy (EGY) and Hlavackova (CZE) within 8sec of the lead and Bryson (GBR) harbouring outside hopes of a medal in 6th place.
Laser Run
With high winds playing havoc at the shooting range, this was not a day to run for world records; instead it was about gritting teeth to stay in the competition, as most of the podium contenders had at least one tough experience at the shooting range.
For Guzi (HUN) and Bryson (GBR) this came at the second visit, allowing Elgindy (EGY) and Ozyuksel (TUR) to establish themselves as the top two, with Hlavackova (CZE) and Shin (KOR) staying close. At the third shoot it was Hlavackova (CZE) and Ozyuksel (TUR) who found the clock ticking close to 30sec. But with every 600m lap that passed, Ozyuksel (TUR) and Guzi (HUN) were the ones who recovered their positions.
At the final visit to the range, there was still potential for anything to change, but this time Ozyuksel (TUR), wearing spectacles, nailed her shots with the usual precision, and set off knowing that she was highly unlikely to be denied that long-awaited gold. Elgindy (EGY) again dug deep after being passed by Guzi (HUN), while Shin (KOR) was caught by the marauding trio of Bryson (GBR), Malashenoka (AIN) and Cazaly (FRA), and finally by Katharina Jurt (SUI) in a sprint for 7th.
A Laser Run time of 11:32 was key to Cazaly (FRA) making up three positions, only bettered on the day by back-markers Mariya Gnedtchik (AIN, 11:17) and Anna Jurt (SUI, 11:19).
Watch and follow
UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Cup Pazardzhik concludes on the afternoon of May 17 with the Men’s Final. Live stream is available free on UIPM’s YouTube streaming service from 13:00 (Central European Summer Time).
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