Plymouth Studio School’s Kerenza Bryson finished as the top Brit with an 8th place finish at the season opening Hungarian Indoor Competition in Budapest yesterday (Sunday 29th January). Fellow Pentathlon GB athletes Charlie Follett, Georgia Hannam and Georgia Pipes finished 11th, 21st and 31st respectively in the Hungarian capital with Yorkshire’s Pipes unfortunately eliminated from the combined laser-run due to a technical infringement having originally crossed the line in 13th place.
In the men’s event, Romford’s Tom Toolis finished 13th with Basingstoke’s Bradley Sutton 36th on his senior international debut.
The competition was held over 2 days with many big names including 2016 Women’s World Champion Sarolta Kovacs competing.
The women’s event started with the riding discipline and fantastic rounds from Follett and Pipes saw them pick up 295 and 294 points respectively, only dropping a small number of points due to narrowly going over the allocated time on a tight and twisty show jumping course. The two youngest members of the team, 18 year olds Hannam (pictured above) and Bryson, secured 271 and 264 points to get their competitions off to solid starts.
The women’s fencing also took place on Saturday, the discipline where Bryson came into her own as she recorded 25 victories and just 7 defeats to top the discipline standings, 2 more victories than any other athlete. Pipes also enjoyed a strong fence with 21 victories and 11 defeats while Follett produced a positive fence of 15 victories and 13 defeats. Hannam, making her senior international debut in the event, finished the discipline standings in 33rd with 9 victories and 23 defeats meaning all 4 Brits were well placed after the opening day.
Day 2 started in the pool with the 200m swim where the new modern pentathlon regulations mean each second quicker than the 2:30.00 benchmark is now worth 2 points rather than 3. As a result, Pipes’ 2:16.79 was worth 277 points with Hannam’s 2:19.45 gaining her an additional 272. Bryson and Follett recorded times of 2:20.63 and 2:22.17 respectively.
It meant that Pipes started the combined laser-run as the highest placed Brit in 2nd, 3 seconds behind leader Sarolta Kovacs. Meanwhile, Bryson headed into the final discipline 6th with Follett 11th and Hannam 23rd. Some strong shooting from the British girls ensured that Bryson recorded a top 10 finish by crossing the line 8th whilst Follett maintained her 11th place and Hannam moved up two spots to 21st. Pipes’ elimination meant she was awarded 0 points for the discipline and as a result, finished the competition in 31st.
In the men’s competition, Toolis and Sutton were in fencing action on Saturday with Tom picking up 23 victories and 14 defeats and Brad securing 8 victories and 29 defeats. It meant the British pair sat 7th and 38th overnight in the Hungarian capital.
Sunday started with the ride and saw impressive rounds from both British athletes. 24 year-old Toolis picked up just two time penalties to record 298 points whilst 18 year-old Sutton who was making his senior international debut secured 291 points meaning he moved two places up the overall standings.
There were numerous quick times in the pool, including from the two Brits, as Sutton recorded a rapid 2:00.87 with Toolis less than a second behind in 2:01.60. It meant Toolis began the combined laser-run in 8th with Sutton 35th. Although both athletes lost a small amount of ground in the final discipline, crossing the line 13th and 36th respectively, the competition provided a good start to the 2017 season.
Hungary’s Bence Demeter, who competed at the 2015 European Championships in Bath, won the men’s competition with France’s Simon Casse beating another Hungarian, Istvan Malits, in a sprint finish to claim silver. In the women’s event, Belarus’ Iryna Prasiantsova took glory ahead of home favourites Kovacs and Anna ZS. Toth.
The schedule for the Hungarian Indoor Competition on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th January 2017 was as follows:
Saturday 28th January
- Women’s Riding
- Men’s Fencing
- Women’s Fencing
Sunday 29th January
- Men’s Riding
- Women’s Swimming
- Men’s Swimming
- Women’s Combined Lase-Run
- Men’s Combined Laser-Run
Women’s team:
- Georgia Pipes, 20, originally from Easingwold, Yorkshire. Currently training at Bath NTC.
- Charlie Follett, 19, originally from Bristol. Currently training at Bath NTC.
- Kerenza Bryson, 18, originally from Plymouth, Devon. Currently training at Plymouth Studio School.
- Georgia Hannam, 18, originally from Morecambe, Lancashire. Currently training at Bath NTC.
Men’s team:
- Tom Toolis, 24, originally from Romford, Essex. Currently training at Bath NTC.
- Bradley Sutton, 18, originally from Basingstoke, Hampshire. Currently training at Bath NTC.
The next time Pentathlon GB athletes will be in action is at the first World Cup of the year in Los Angeles from 23rd-27th February.
Report courtesy of Pentathlon GB
