Ahmed Elgendy attained Egypt’s first gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, winning the men’s Modern Pentathlon with a world record of 1,555 points. However, he faltered toward the finish on Saturday on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles.
Japan’s Taishu Sato took the silver and Italy’s Giorgio Malan the bronze, meaning three continents were represented on the podium.
Elgendy’s gold was an Olympic first for an African athlete in Modern Pentathlon. It followed the silver he took in Tokyo three years ago, which was Egypt’s first medal in the sport.
The Egyptian dominated from the get-go, strengthening to his top fencing rating with a clear round in show jumping (after teammate Mohanad Shaban was eliminated for a fall), strong swimming, and an unshakable grip in laser shooting.
“After the riding, I was feeling more confident, seeing the gold medal,” said El Gendy, according to Reuters, who was almost disqualified in Friday’s semi-final but was one of just six who qualified without penalty on Saturday.
