Pentathlon Canada – At only her second international competition in the Olympic sport of Modern Pentathlon, 17-year-old Abigail Edison, of Calgary, Alberta went above and beyond expectations finishing a strong 14th place in a field of 36 finalists from around the world at the UIPM Tetrathlon Under 19 World Championships Final on Tuesday, April 10th 2018.

The competition started on Sunday, April 8th with the qualification round. A field of 98 athletes in three separate groups competed for a spot in the finals. In her group, Abigail had a solid fence, a second-place swim, and with a strong Laser-Run punched her ticket to the finals by placing 8th.

In the finals, after a 32nd placing in épée fencing, Abigail was within striking distance of the field. In the next event – 200m freestyle swimming – she impressed with the second fastest time of the day which moved her up to 22nd position going into the last element of the competition, the Laser-Run. Improving on a personal best from the qualification round, Abigail capped it off with an exceptionally powerful finish in the laser-run event, moving up eight positions, and finishing in 14th place. This unprecedented finish is the highest result ever by a U19 Canadian pentathlete at a Youth World Championships.

The 17-year-old athlete transitioned to Modern Pentathlon in 2016, now representing Ares Pentathlon and Fencing Club in Calgary, Alberta, while also swimming for the Calgary Patriots swim team.

Coaches Darragh O’Malley and Joshua Riker-Fox noted how impressed they are with Abigail’s progress: “She surprised a lot of people with her result both in the qualifiers and the final. Perhaps the only person not surprised was Abby herself. Though new to the international level, Abby competes with conviction. She plans the process and trusts it will bring out her best. In 2017, it was clear she had something special in her raw abilities. But few would predict a top-20 result at the U19 Youth World Championships, so the leap forward remains a nice surprise. The real upside is she has identified opportunities to improve upon from this week and will begin working on them shortly. Fourteenth at her first U19 Youth World Championships, after making it through a quite challenging semi-final is remarkable.”

Looking ahead at the next couple of months, Abby will be back in Calgary, training and competing with a goal to earn a spot in the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Buenos Aires in October 2018.

Quotes:
“My first world championships were an incredible experience, and I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to represent Canada in a field dominated by European and Asian nations. The high level of competition pushed me to be a stronger athlete, and I learned so much about the sport. None of this would have been possible without the hard work of my world-class coach in Portugal, Joshua Riker-Fox. I am optimistic that we’ll see multiple Canadian athletes at Youth World Championships in the future. “ Abigail Edison

“Congratulations to Abby on her success in the UIPM Youth World Championships. As one of Alberta’s emerging world-class athletes in the sport of modern pentathlon, we are immensely proud and look forward to following her progress on the International stage.”
Connie Olsen, President, Pentathlon Alberta
 
“Pentathlon Canada welcomes Abigail Edison to the ranks of the top athletes in the sport of modern pentathlon in Canada. Two female athletes represented Canada in both the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and the 2012 London Olympic Games, and Abigail’s excellent result at the Under 19 Youth World Championships bodes well for our up and coming youth athletes who aspire to follow in their path.”
Shaun LaGrange, President, Pentathlon Canada

About Pentathlon Canada
Pentathlon Canada governs the sport of modern pentathlon in Canada, supporting our provincial associations and national team athletes in building a supportive environment for our sport. Pentathletes compete in five sports – fencing, swimming, equestrian riding, and a laser-run in a one-day competition. For more information contact George Skene at media@pentathloncanada.ca or visit www.pentathloncanada.ca