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Bill Kellick January 09, 2011
Palm Springs Qualifier Results
& Note about World Cup Team
USA Pentathlon to name TEAM USA January 19 Coaches and Athletes selected to represent the United States at the first World Cup event held on U.S. soil in 12 years will be named Wednesday, January 19th by the governing body of Modern Pentathlon. This is the first step towards qualification for the 2011 Pan American Games. U.S. athletes will be invited to join the TEAM USA based on the combined results of the two US domestic qualification competitions.
See www.usapentathlon.org for the 2011 Pan American Games Selection System. These competitions were held December 18th in Colorado Springs, Colorado and January 9th in Palm Springs, California. The USA World Cup will be held February 24-27 in Rancho Mirage and Palm Springs, California. |  | 
Press Conference Kicks Off
US World Cup Rancho Mirage, CA
The award of the Pentathlon US World Cup 1 to the desert cities of Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage was formally announced at a press conference July 7 at the Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa.
Dignitaries in attendance included the members of the Agua Caliente Tribal Council; Richard Kite, the mayor of Rancho Mirage; Rick Hutcheson, the mayor pro tem of Palm Springs; and Rancho Mirage City Council members.
Rob Stull, managing director of USA Pentathlon, and Mike Duffy, local organizing committee co-organizer, unveiled the World Cup’s logo to an appreciative audience and then signed the papers.
The event was covered by print and electronic media and was prominently featured in local newspaper, radio, and TV coverage.
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Member, United States Olympic Committee
MEDIA RELEASE
Palm Springs & Rancho Mirage, CA to
Host World Cup Action Official Document Signing at Agua Caliente Casino, Resort, Spa
Where: Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa, 32-250 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage, CA
When: Wednesday, July 7; Time : 1:00 PM
What: City government, USA Pentathlon officials, International Pentathlon officials, and Olympians will hold a press conference and official signing of the World Cup documents at Agua Caliente.
Press Contact: Connie Ballard, World Cup Communications: 626-993-7828 or USA Pentathlon: 719-866-3029 or email info@usapentathlon.org
BACKGROUND ON THE USA PENTATHLON WORLD CUP:
The United States has been awarded the honor of hosting the World Cup for the Olympic sport of Modern Pentathlon in each of the years 2011-2014. Host cities are Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, California. The announcement was made at the Executive Board meeting of The International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) in Moscow, Russia.
Each year, the UIPM awards five World Cup events to cities around the world, with athletes earning qualifying points for the World Cup Final and Olympic Games each year. The Palm Springs/Rancho Mirage event marks the first World Cup on U.S. soil since 1999. The prestigious event is scheduled for Feb. 24-27, 2011.
“Hosting the World Cup in Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage allows us to firmly create a home-court stop leading up to the Olympic Games of 2012”, said Rob Stull, managing director of USA Pentathlon and three-time Olympian in the sport.
“We are proud that the international community recognized the merits of the exceptional bid put forth by these two remarkable American communities and look forward to welcoming the World in February, 2011,” echoed Barry Machett, chairman of the board for USA Pentathlon.
Modern pentathlon is one of the oldest Olympic sports, having been created especially for the Summer Olympic Games by the founder of those modern Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin. It was first contested in 1912, with a young Lieutenant George Patton of World War II fame competing. Coubertin was inspired by the pentathlon event in the ancient Olympic Games, circa 776 B.C., which was modeled after the skills of the ideal soldier at the time. The modern pentathlon simulates the experience of a 19th-century cavalry soldier behind enemy lines: he/she must ride an unfamiliar horse, fight with pistol and sword, swim, and run. Therefore, the modern pentathlon event comprises the five sport disciplines:
• épée fencing
• pistol shooting
• 200-meter freestyle swimming
• show jumping on horseback
• 3km cross country running
The riding event is an equestrian stadium jumping event where the athlete (called a “pentathlete”) must ride a horse he/she does not know over a course comprised of 12 obstacles. Fencing is only one hit, in order to simulate a duel. Swimming is a 200-meter freestyle race. The shooting and running events are combined where the athlete must run 1000 meters, stop and shoot five targets with a pistol - then do it again – three times for a total of 15 targets and 3000 meters (about 2 miles). Each event is scored using a simple points system and the winner is the athlete with the highest point total — easily visible as the running/shooting event is handicapped and the first person across the finish line is the overall pentathlon winner.
Hotel:
The event will be headquartered at the Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa in Rancho Mirage, Calif., which will also play host to the opening and closing ceremonies.
For Additional Information:
Connie Ballard, World Cup Communications: 626-993-7828 or USA Pentathlon: 719-866-3029 or email usaworldcup@usapentathlon.org
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