Korean World Pentathlon athlete Jeon Woong-tae breaks world record

Jeon Woong-tae (age 27), Korea’s first Olympic medalist for World Pentathlon, has achieved the highest score in Korean history at the season’s first world cup games.

He won the final round of the UIPM(Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne) held in Albena, Bulgaria with 1,737 points for the men’s final round on Saturday (local time). It was his win in 13 months since the second tournament of the 2021 season held in Sophia, Bulgaria in April 2021.

Jeon achieved a world record with 284 points in fencing, gaining 31 wins out of 35 matches, the highest record in the number of wins. He was fourth in place at 1,160 points in Group B at the semi-finals, but always in first place for fencing in the preliminary, semi-finals and final rounds. He also won top place in the final swim competition (308 points), setting a record in world cup history.

Jeon remained unwavering in new competition rules. The World Pentathlon World Cup added a semi-final round to its competition rules instead of final games held after preliminary rounds. Thirty-six athletes in the preliminary round are divided in Group A and B and participate in the semi-finals, in which 18 top performers compete again in the final round. This poses greater physical pressure than the previous game rules, but Jeon still excelled and achieved first place. “The new rules were challenging, but I am happy to deliver good news in the first competition of the season,” he said.


leper@donga.com