Hungarian athletes protest against serious changes concerning pentathlon

Öttusa Pentathlon Show Jumping Horse Riding

Illustration: Wikimedia Commons / Leslie Blue7

Over a hundred athletes, trainers, referees and sports representatives gathered on Friday in Budapest to protest against a recent decision by the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) to remove horse riding from pentathlon’s Olympic programme after 2024.

“This is a day of historic importance, a day when we are seeing unprecedented cooperation in the sports of pentathlon,” said Ádám Marosi, an Olympic bronze and multiple World Championships winning athlete.

Ferenc Török, an Olympic champion and lawyer, initiated that the sport’s Hungarian association and the Hungarian Olympic Committee should jointly appeal to the International Olympic Committee.

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At the event, an open letter addressed to Thomas Bach, the president of IOC and signed by the participants was presented to the media. In the letter, they ask the IOC chief to take action against the decision “which is harmful and detrimental not only to pentathlon but also to the prestige of the Olympic Games”.