TOOWOOMBA, 27 April 2025 – The Olympic sport of modern pentathlon turned a corner in Australia on Saturday, with Modern Pentathlon Australia (MPA) hosting the first national Championship to incorporate the new discipline of obstacle course racing, alongside the traditional disciplines of swimming, fencing, shooting and running. With the new format debuting at the Olympic level in Los Angeles, 2028, the Championships saw plenty of new faces with their sights set on Olympic glory.

In the senior women’s event, seasoned campaigner Aleska van Heekeren (NSW) put on a superb display of shooting accuracy in the laser run, narrowly staying in front of Calypso Sheridan (NSW) to take the title.   Dean Duabaras (NSW) took out the senior men’s title from Amos Vagg (NSW), while Nicholas Odgers (ACT) secured the junior men’s title with an outstanding score of 1,349 points.  Sheridan, Duabaras and Odgers are newcomers to pentathlon, with sporting pedigrees in swimming, athletics and triathlon respectively.  All appear to be relishing the challenge of combining five different sports into a single event and will be even stronger with another year of training in the new disciplines under their belts.

The age group categories also saw a mix of old and new faces, with plenty of smiles, great camaraderie and high energy on show.  A strong team from Modern Pentathlon Victoria, a traditional powerhouse in the Australian pentathlon world, took home medals in most of the age categories, including Zoe Addinsall (U19 girls), Oli Clapham (U17 boys), Rupert Richards (U15 boys) and Ava Harrington (U15 girls).  Peyton Lee (NSW) snared the U17 girls title.

The John Pennell Award for volunteer of the year was awarded to Amos Vagg (NSW), for the extraordinary work he has done to attract new athletes to the sport in NSW since 2023, and  to Maki Takken (QLD), for her tireless efforts in leading MPA through a difficult transition period and uplifting its governance standards.

The Glennie School in Toowoomba proved an ideal venue for the event, with the boarding house turning out to cheer on their friend and fellow student, Annie Patterson-Kane.  Allstar Gymnastics lived up to its name, demonstrating flexibility and imagination to design an obstacle course suitable for the event.  MPA is grateful to both The Glennie School and Allstar Gymnastics for their generous support, as well as to the Queensland Fencing Association and Brisbane Grammar School, for making referees and equipment available. 

Finally, MPA extends its heartfelt thanks to its volunteers, whose generous contributions of time, energy and expertise made this event possible.

Images from all phases of the event can be found in the Event Gallery

Full event results are available here: