Thirty-four modern pentathlon athletes are expected to participate in the pentathlon exhibition match at the 20th National Games (PON) scheduled from October 8-9, 2021 in Sentani, Jayapura District, Papua.

Secretary General of Modern Pentathlon Indonesia (MPI) and the competition manager for the 20th Papua PON, Castor J Tindage, said the 34 athletes will represent just eight provinces.

“The participants, 34 men and women athletes from eight provinces, are currently preparing themselves for the arena testing, and they are ready to participate in the exhibition,” he divulged at an online discussion originating from the 20th PON media centre in Jakarta on Thursday.

The eight provinces participating in the exhibition sport are Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, East Java, Bali, South Sulawesi, Papua, and Riau, he elaborated.

Though the modern pentathlon combines five sports (fencing, freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross-country running), the current exhibition will feature only three sports and six competitions, Tindage said.

“We are currently preparing the match venue and have just recently finished our technical meeting. The participants will test the match venue for the swimming, running, and shooting sports, while equestrian and fencing would not be contested,” Tindage informed.

The medal matches will comprise men’s, women’s, and mixed triathlons and, men’s, women’s, and mixed laser run, he added.

Meanwhile, MTI chairperson Anthony C Soenarjo said that only athletes classified as level two will be allowed to participate in the exhibition.

“We are allowing only level-two athletes to participate in the exhibition, and athletes who have won a medal in the past SEA Games are not allowed to join,” Soenarjo added.

The pentathlon exhibition would introduce the outdoor sport, which is known to test the endurance of its participants, to the public, he said.

Source: Antara News