It is difficult to achieve true mastery in any kind of dispute. Pentathlon (including modern) is experienced by an athlete in five different disciplines: horse riding, shooting, fencing, swimming and running. The ancient Greeks, who laid the foundations for the pentathlon, believed that the set of special tests shows not only the physical strength and dexterity of the fighter, but also his high morale.
Pentathlon and the ancient Greeks
Pentathlon is a type of all-around sports. Athletes participating in this competition can show their dexterity in each of the five disciplines. The complex of these disciplines, according to the basic idea, should reveal the capabilities of the human body from different angles, creating a certain general ideal of physical perfection. The history of the pentathlon dates back to ancient times, when at the ancient Olympic Games athletes measured the qualities necessary for a successful battle to the ancient Greek soldiers - they competed in running for a certain distance, long jumps, threw darts and disks, covered rugged terrain on horseback. As the ancient Greeks believed, in addition to the perfection of the body, they also demonstrated the moral perfection of the spirit, which various sports bring up with exhausting training, patience and abstinence.
Pentathlon Revival
Together with the revival of the Olympic Games, the pentathlon was also returned from oblivion. At the beginning of the 20th century, he entered the program, but, of course, not in the same form in which he practiced among the ancient Greeks. The idea that several disciplines in the aggregate can more characterize the degree of physical fitness of a person was taken as a basis and modernized.
Later, all-around, as in Ancient Greece, reflected the level of military skill and combat training, however, commensurate with the current century, and was called "officer pentathlon", and only applicants with the rank of officer were allowed to compete. Some disciplines, in principle, have moved from ancient pentathlon. It’s running and horse racing over rough terrain. Their essence has been preserved, but the modern pentathlon, in contrast to the antique, has other distances, requirements for the track, and assessment methods. The officers also had to demonstrate proficiency in fencing with swords, shooting with a pistol and crossing a water barrier with any swimming style. All sports were evaluated and a winner was determined.
Over time, this kind of multi-boring became popular, gradually taking the form of the way we know it. After the creation of the International Union of Modern Pentathlon, all comers who did not have an officer rank were allowed to compete. At the moment, in addition to the modern, they also distinguish the classic athletics pentathlon. Since then, the modern pentathlon program has undergone a number of changes, although all disciplines have remained the same.
Riding Cross Country (Jumping)
In this competition, the athlete does not saddle his horse, but the one that the lot will provide him with. In order to travel around it, he is given 20 minutes, 5 attempts to take the obstacles. The show jumping distance is determined from 350 to 450 m, with obstacles located on it not exceeding 120 cm in height and 150 cm in width, including at least one double system and one triple.
Depending on the distance, the Federation of Modern Pentathlon sets a temporary norm for the entire path, which is equal to the maximum number of points that a participant can get. The final result depends on how much the participant does not meet this norm, as well as on the implementation. This takes into account the loss of control of the horse, obstruction, as well as the loss of a rider by a horse or a fall. For every second in excess of the established time norm and for each technical violation, penalty points are awarded, the total score is obtained by subtracting their amount from the original number of points.
Overcoming the water barrier
The distance to overcome the water barrier is 200 m. The choice of swimming style is carried out by the participant arbitrarily. The assessment is as follows: the time norm is determined, which is equal to the number of points, as well as the time range, which is usually 0.3 s, which is equal to penalty points. If the time to overcome the distance is less than the norm, then a multiple number of points is added to the total score;
Sword Fencing
Here, all participants meet each other in person, the only time for the entire pentathlon. Modern registration of an injection is carried out by means of electric sensors. Fight until the first injection. If none of the fencers can get their opponent, the battle ends after 1 minute, both of them are considered losers. Also, not one of the injections is counted if both managed to prick the enemy, but with a difference of 0.04 s, and the end of the battle will be marked by the Halt team.
There is also a norm corresponding to a certain number of points and 70% of victories, from which points are taken or added to, depending on whether more opponents were defeated or less. Technical violations, such as, for example, turning your back to the opponent or unsafe manipulations, are charged with fines to the fencer and are also deducted from the total score.
Cross country cross-country and shooting (combine harvester)
Modern Pentathlon combines cross-country cross-country and pistol shooting. All previously acquired points are transformed into the time period. As a rule, cross-shooting is the final test. Thus, participants find out who is the first to go to the start, and who gets the head start.
The distance for cross-country is determined at 3000 m. Three firing lines are located along the entire route. The athlete's task is to cover five targets for which he has an unlimited number of rounds, or after a certain period of time leave the line and continue the cross, even if some of the targets remain uncovered. The modern pentathlon of Russia allows pneumatic pistols, which must be recharged after each shot, or laser pistols. The participant who was the first to cross the finish line wins the pentathlon.