Great Britain’s qualifying in Poland kept coming with medals in both events in Modern Pentathlon.
The top eight athletes (one per country) in both men’s and women’s events would qualify for the Olympics. The 2023 European Games (Kraków, POL, 25 Jun-1 Jul 2023) at the AWF (Academy of Physical Education) Stadium.
Four Brits entered in the men’s event. Charles Brown reached the semifinal stage in the World Cup semifinal, while Joe Choong is the reigning Olympic champion and had won gold in European championships before in Bath 2019 (this event doubled as the European Championships as well). Samuel Curry has some decent performances at World Cup level, especially as part of a team, while Myles Pillage had three European golds as part of a team.
In qualification A, Choong and Pillage needed to be in the top eighteen. In Fencing, Choong won 18 bouts to get 236 points, while Pillage won 16 to get 222. In Swimming, Pillage was faster, with 1:53.72 (323 points), with Choong in 1:56.94 (317). In the Laser run, Pillage came home in 10:50.3 (650 points), with Choong getting 10:59.4 (641). Therefore, Pillage was eighth with 1195 and Choong thirteenth with 1194, ahead of Spain’s Aleix Heredia on 1179 in nineteenth.
Brown and Curry were in qualifier B. Both won fourteen fencing bouts for 208 points. However, Brown was the quicker swimmer, with 1:57.40 (316 points), and Curry in 2:00.48 (310). In the Laser run, Brown’s 10:33.7 was enough for 667 points, enough for second with 1191, clear of Türkiye’s Tolga Topaklı in nineteenth on 1161. However, Curry’s 11:08.2 was enough for only 632 points, enough for 1150, short of Vital Müller of Switzerland in eighteenth on 1175.
Choong and Pillage advanced to Semifinal A, and had to be in the top nine. Choong won 22 fencing bouts, with Pillage winning 21, and neither getting any bonuses, for a total of 235 and 230 points respectively. Pillage was the faster swimmer however, coming home in 1:58.32 (314 points) compared to Choong’s 1:59.62 (311). Pillage was faster in the laser run too, with 10:45.7 (655), and Choong in 10:49.2 (651), thus Pillage was sixth on 1199 and Choong ninth on 1197, ahead of Hungary’s Mihály Koleszár in tenth on 1191.
Brown was the only Brit in Semifinal B, and he won seventeen fencing bouts and three bonuses for a total of 216 points. 2:01.39 in swimming was enough for 308 more points, and a 10:14.4 in the laser run earned 686 points and 1210 in total for second, ahead of Christian Zillekens of Germany in tenth on 1201.
Therefore, Brown, Choong, and Pillage were all in the final. Choong was the best fencer, with 22 wins plus a bonus for 237 points. Pilage won 21 bouts for 230, while Brown won 17 and a bonus for 212. In riding, Choong earned 292 points, Pillage 286, and Brown 280. In Swimming, Pillage was fastest in 1:56.18 (318 points), with Brown in 2:00.98 (309), and Choong in 2:01.57 (307). Choong was the fastest in laser run, in 10:05.7 (695), with Brown in 10:08.7 (692), and Pillage in 10:10.9 (690). Choong will have been disappointed with that laser run which cost him gold, but 1531 points was a silver medal that got him qualified. Pillage in fourth (1524) and Brown in eleventh (1493) were also ahead of Czechia’s Marek Grycz in fifteenth (1473), the man to beat once duplicates were taken out.
On the Women’s side, four Brits entered. Kerenza Bryson has won World Cup stages and came sixth at the final, with Olivia Green tenth in Ankara. Jessica Varley was 36th at that event, with Emma Whitaker thirteenth.
In the Qualification A, Bryson and Green were the Brits. Bryson was the better fencer, with twenty wins (250) to nineteen (243). However, Green swam quicker, with 2:16.21 (278), and Bryson in 2:23.70 (263). In the Laser Run, Bryson came through in 12:28.6 (552) and Green did so in 12:35.5 (545). Thus, Green was thirteenth in 1066 and Bryson fifteenth in 1065, ahead of Hungary’s Kamilla Réti in nineteenth (1042).
Varley and Whitaker were in Qualification B, with Whitaker the better fencer: Whitaker with fifteen wins (215) and Varley fourteen (208). Whitaker also swam faster in 2:15.76 (279) compared to 2:20.276 (270). Whitaker was also better in laser run, coming home in 11:30.1 (610) compared to 11:35.3 (605). Whitaker was ninth in 1104, beating Poland’s Oktawia Nowacka in nineteenth on 1084. However, Varley’s 1083 was only enough for twentieth, behind Lithuania’s Ieva Serapinaitė in eighteenth on 1096.
Bryson and Green were in Semifinal A. Bryson fenced better, with 21 wins (230) compared to eighteen for Green (215), with no bonuses. However, Green swam better, in 2:13.91 (284) and 2:21.91 for Bryson (268). In the laser run, Bryson was faster, with 11:27.7 compared to 11:27.9, both getting 613 points. Therefore, Green was safely through in fifth with 1112 points, and Bryson in sixth with 1111, ahead of Pole Natalia Dominiak in tenth with 1100.
In the other semi, Whitaker was the sole Brit, and she won twenty fencing bouts (and no bonuses) for 225 points. 2:17.91 in swimming was enough for 275 points, and 11:34.0 in the laser run was enough for 606 points. A total of 1106 was enough for seventh, beating Belgium’s Anaïs Eudes for 1102.
Three Brits in the final then: Bryson, Green, and Whitaker. Bryson fenced best, with 21 wins and a bonus for 232 points, with Whitaker earning 225 points for twenty wins and no bonus. Green won eighteen and a bonus for 217 points. In riding, Whitaker got 292 points, while Bryson and Green earned 286. In swimming, Green was fastest, with 2:14.35 and 282 points, compared to 2:17.43 and 276 for Whitaker and 2:22.59 and 265 for Bryson. In the laser run, Green ran 10:57.4 and 643 points, Bryson’s 11:06.3 got her 634, with Whitaker in 12:50.1 and 530. Thus Green got a bronze medal and a place in the games with 1428, with Bryson sixth on 1417, and Whitaker seventeenth on 1323. In fact, only eight countries were represented in the final, so the top performing Brit was guaranteed a place.
The next chance for other Brits to qualify (with two places per NOC) will be at the World Championships on home soil in Bath from 21 to 28 August 2023.
GB Games 