The athletes in modern pentathlon know for certain horses won’t be part of their event at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. They just hope they get invited. Although the century-old Olympic sport is on the docket for the Paris Games next summer — with horses — it’s not currently part of the LA Games program. That could soon change as the International Olympic Committee’s executive board meets this week to decide whether modern pentathlon, boxing and weightlifting will gain inclusion. The three were tasked with demonstrating they’ve made changes to the governance or organizational culture.
That meant a dramatic makeover for modern pentathlon after issues that arose during the show-jumping portion at the Tokyo Games in 2021. The sport swapped equestrian for obstacles (think: “American Ninja Warrior”) as the fifth discipline to join swimming, laser shooting, running and fencing.
To some, it was a radical, sport-altering move that usher in a new sort of athlete, while saying farewell to horses — an integral part of the event’s history.
To others, a completely necessary action because being placed on the Olympic sideline would’ve meant a significant financial blow. The Olympic revenue distribution to the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM), the sport’s governing body, has been a combined $26 million from the Tokyo and the 2016 Rio Games. Unlike, say, basketball, the Olympics are everything for modern pentathlon.
“It’s our Everest,” said Jamie Cooke, a two-time Olympian who’s now coaching the Swiss team. “It’s how we showcase our event to the world.”
The sports landscape is crowded these days, and the Olympics are trending toward a younger audience. LA28 recently delivered a proposal to put flag football on the program when the Summer Games return to the United States for the first time in 32 years. Also on the LA proposal were baseball and softball, lacrosse, squash, and cricket.
Not picked up by LA28 were breakdancing — which makes its debut in Paris — motorsports, kickboxing and karate. “Yes, there is competition with other sports. But we hope that we will be confirmed in the program after the change we’ve made,” Joel Bouzou, the vice president of UIPM, said in an interview with The Associated Press in May.
Modern pentathlon has been part of the Olympics since the 1912 Stockholm Games.
