‘I aim for first modern pentathlon medal'

"These are the words of Seong Seung-min (21), the Korean women’s modern pentathlon national representative. The Paris Olympics, which opens on July 26 (local time), will feature the modern pentathlon at the Palace of Versailles. Horseback riding, fencing, swimming, and laser run (track and field + shooting) competitions will be held one after the other in a special stadium set up at Place Royale in the heart of the palace garden.

Korean modern pentathlon entered its golden age when Jeon Woong-tae won a bronze medal in the men's individual event at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Jeon was the first Korean modern pentathlete to win an Olympic medal. Seong Seung-min is determined to continue her golden era with her first Olympic medal in the Korean women's modern pentathlon. Seong emerged as a candidate for a medal at the Paris Olympics after winning silver medals in the women's individual event at the 2nd and 3rd International Union of Modern Pentathlon (UIPM) World Cups last month.

Seong has not yet secured a spot in the finals of the Paris Olympics. However, among players who did not qualify for the finals, she has the highest UIPM Olympic ranking. Seong is currently ranked 3rd, but the 1st and 2nd places have already qualified. UIPM will distribute 12 of the remaining spots based on World Cup and World Championship performances until June 17. “I will not attach meaning to the current ranking and will not slow down my pace until my participation in the Olympics is confirmed,” Seong said.

Seong entered Daegu Physical Education Middle School as a swimmer, and at the recommendation of her teacher, she changed her sport to modern pentathlon during her first year. Seong, who won the top spot at the National Junior Sports Competition in succession in her second and third years of middle school, dominated the domestic stage by winning three gold medals in the girls' high school division at the National Sports Competition in 2019, when she was a freshman at Daegu Sports High School. She then went on to win her gold medal at the 2019 Youth Asia and Oceania Championships, which was her first international competition.

She also needs to gain more playing experience. Seong started the laser run, her third and final event in her third World Cup, as the lead, but she eventually slipped to second place. She said, “It was my first time starting laser run at the front, so I didn’t know what to do with the athletes chasing me from behind. I want to win at the Olympics because laser run is a sport that I naturally feel confident in.”


Hong-Gu Kang windup@donga.com