The pentathlon or women's pentathlon is a combined track and field event in which each woman competes in five separate events over one day (formerly two days). The distance or time for each event is converted to points via scoring tables, with the overall ranking determined by total points.[1] Since 1949 the events have been sprint hurdling, high jump, shot put, long jump, and a flat race. The sprint hurdles distance was 80 m outdoors until 1969 and thereafter 100 m; in indoor pentathlon the distance is 60 m. The flat race was 200 m until 1976 and thereafter 800 m.[2] In elite-level outdoor competition, the pentathlon was superseded in 1981 by the heptathlon, which has seven events, with both 200 m and 800 m, as well as the javelin throw.[3] Pentathlon is still contested at school and masters[4] level and indoors.
The word pentathlon is derived from the Greek pente (five) and athlon (contest). The ancient Olympic pentathlon comprised a sprint, the javelin and discus throws, long jump, and wrestling. The modern pentathlon is a multi-sport event. In men's track and field, pentathlon competitions were held in the 20th century, but the ten-event decathlon became the standard multi-event contest.
The International Women's Sports Federation was established in 1921 and the first reported pentathlon was in the 1922 Women's Olympiad in Monte Carlo.[5] The events were: 60 m, 300 m, high jump, two-hand javelin, and two-hand shot.[5] In the late 1920s, the events were: shot and long jump on the first day, and 100 m, high jump, and javelin on the second day.[5] The first world record recognised by the IAAF was set at the 1934 Women's World Games by Gisela Mauermayer.[5]
From 1949 the events were: shot, high jump, and 200 m on the first day; 80 m hurdles and long jump on the second.[5] The scoring tables were changed in 1954, and again in 1971.[5] In 1961, the order of the events was changed to: 80 m hurdles, shot, and high jump on the first day; long jump and 200 m on the second, in 1971 the 80 m hurdles were changed to 100 m hurdles.[5] From 1977 all were contested in a single day.[5] Pentathlon was contested at the European Athletics Championships from 1950 to 1978, and at the Olympics from 1964 until 1980.[5] The IAAF has not ratified world records in outdoor pentathlon since replacing it in 1981 with the heptathlon.[6] [7]
The pentathlon is still held indoors, where the heptathlon cannot be held as arenas are too small for the javelin throw. It was added to the IAAF World Indoor Championships as an unofficial event in 1993 and officially in 1995. The indoor pentathlon is held over a one-day period. Each athlete completes one event at the same time, then there is a 30-minute break until the next event. The current world record is 5055 points by Nafissatou Thiam at the 2023 European Athletics Indoor Championships.
| Events | |
|---|---|
| 60 metres hurdles | |
| High jump | |
| Shot put | |
| Long jump | |
| 800 metres |
(60 m hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump, 800m)
| Rank | Score | Athlete | Date | Place | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5055 | 3 March 2023 | Istanbul | [9] | ||
| 2 | 5014 | 3 March 2023 | Istanbul | |||
| 3 | 5013 | 9 March 2012 | Istanbul | |||
| 4 | 5004 | 16 February 2023 | Albuquerque | [10] | ||
| 5 | 5000 | 6 March 2015 | Prague | |||
| 6 | 4991 | 15 February 1992 | Berlin | |||
| 7 | 4965 | 9 March 2012 | ||||
| 8 | 4948 | 4 March 2005 | Madrid | |||
| 9 | 4929 | 18 March 2022 | Belgrade | [11] | ||
| 10 | 4927 | 2 March 2007 | Birmingham | |||
| 11 | 4896 | 7 February 2012 | Moscow | |||
| 12 | 4881 | 18 March 2016 | Portland | |||
| 13 | 4877 | 11 February 2007 | Ghent | |||
| 14 | 4866 | 3 February 1995 | ||||
| 15 | 4850 | 9 March 2001 | ||||
| 16 | 4830 | 7 March 2014 | ||||
| 17 | 4808 | 27 February 1998 | ||||
| 18 | 4805 | 21 February 2014 | ||||
| 19 | 4802 | 9 March 2012 | ||||
| 20 | 4801 | 11 March 1994 | ||||
| 2 March 1997 | ||||||
| 22 | 4792 | 7 February 2012 | ||||
| 23 | 4784 | 4 February 2009 | ||||
| 24 | 4780 | 7 March 1997 | ||||
| 25 | 4775 | 11 March 1994 |
Below is a list of scores equal or superior to 4775 pts:
| Athlete | Country | Points | Event results | Place | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4768 | 8.16 s, 1.74 m, 14.76 m, 6.61 m, 2:15.63 | Moscow, Soviet Union | 15 February 1985 | |||
 | 4991 | 8.22 s, 1.93 m, 13.25 m, 6.67 m, 2:10.26 | Berlin, Germany | 15 February 1992 | ||
 | 5013 | 8.38 s, 1.84 m, 16.51 m, 6.57 m, 2:11.15 | Istanbul, Turkey | 9 March 2012 | ||
 | 5014 | 8.21 s, 1.89 m, 13.89 m, 6.62 m, 2:07.17 | Istanbul, Turkey | 3 March 2023 | ||
 | 5055 | 8.23 s, 1.92 m, 15.54 m, 6.59 m, 2:13.60 | Istanbul, Turkey | 3 March 2023 |
| Event | Type | Athlete | Record | Score | Difference in points scored | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 m hurdles | ||||||
| WR | 1212 | |||||
| PB | 7.91 s | 1150 | −62 | [12] | ||
| High jump | ||||||
| WR | 1345 | |||||
| PB | 1.99 m | 1224 | −121 | |||
| Shot put | ||||||
| WR | 22.50 m | 1369 | ||||
| PB | 20.27 m | 1217 | −152 | |||
| Long jump | ||||||
| WR | 7.37 m | 1299 | ||||
| PB | 6.89 m | 1135 | −164 | [13] | ||
| 800 m | ||||||
| WR | 1:55.82 min:s | 1182 | ||||
| PB | 2:04.42 min:s | 1048 | −134 | |||
| Total | World record | 6407 | ||||
| Pentathlon bests | 5774 | −633 | ||||
| 1995 Barcelona | ||||
| 1997 Paris | ||||
| 1999 Maebashi | ||||
| 2001 Lisbon | ||||
| 2003 Birmingham | ||||
| 2004 Budapest | ||||
| 2006 Moscow | ||||
| 2008 Valencia | ||||
| 2010 Doha | ||||
| 2012 Istanbul | ||||
| 2014 Sopot | ||||
| 2016 Portland | [14] | |||
| 2018 Birmingham | ||||
| 2022 Belgrade | ||||
| 2024 Glasgow |
| Year | Score | Athlete | Place | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 4,851 | Volgograd | ||
| 2014 | 4,830 | Sopot | ||
| 2015 | 5,000 | Prague | ||
| 2016 | 4,881 | Portland | ||
| 2017 | 4,870 | Belgrade | ||
| 2018 | 4,760 | Albuquerque | ||
| 2019 | 4,983 | Glasgow | ||
| 2020 | 4,629 | Louvain-la-Neuve | ||
| 2021 | 4,904 | Toruń | ||
| 2022 | 4,929 | Belgrade | ||
| 2023 | 5,055 | Istanbul |
As well as indoor events at all levels, outdoor pentathlon is still common in high school athletics. It is simply a smaller version of the decathlon or a heptathlon. For girls, it is 100 m high hurdles, long jump, shot put, high jump, and an 800 m run. The pentathlon is used because it is less stressful on the athletes than a full multi and because many high school meets only last one day, it allows the event to be contested in the time limit.