- 3 years ago
Men's Final
Category
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SportsTranscript
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00:01:07 Welcome back to Sofia Bulgaria for the conclusion of Super Saturday. It is time to move on to the men's final.
00:01:15 We had the women's final earlier this morning. Super, super dramatic end to that final.
00:01:20 Many congratulations again to Quenza Bryson who picked up her first gold medal in World Cup format.
00:01:27 But it is now time to move on to the men's final as mentioned.
00:01:29 And it really becomes a question of who can stop Valentin Pras.
00:01:33 He is top of the leaderboard after the fencing ranking round.
00:01:37 And we will have a look at those scores in more detail in just a few moments time.
00:01:42 Temperature-wise it's heated right up. 19 degrees Celsius as we build up to the start of our first discipline, the riding.
00:01:49 We've had some cool weather. We've had some rainy weather.
00:01:51 But finally the sun has broken through the crowds and lifted the moods.
00:01:55 And those stood on the sidelines watching over are getting excited because the men's final is about to start.
00:02:02 Charlie Follett and Emma Whitaker have turned out to watch Joseph Chung and Miles Pillage,
00:02:07 the two British athletes that will be competing in this men's final.
00:02:11 They both competed earlier in the women's individual final.
00:02:16 And of course we are building up to coverage of our first discipline.
00:02:22 But before we do that, let's just take a look at how modern pentathlon has changed over the past couple of years.
00:02:26 We have a new format which starts with qualifications where the athlete numbers are reduced to two groups of 18.
00:02:31 With semi-final A and semi-final B taking place.
00:02:34 After the semi-finals we're left with the 18 best athletes who contest in today's Super Saturday final.
00:02:39 The event taking place over a condensed 90-minute duration with five disciplines and 18 super athletes up against each other and competing for the medals.
00:02:47 Well, today is of course finals day.
00:02:48 So we have riding for the first time and the scores for riding up in your screens now.
00:02:53 We'll go into greater detail with our first format when it begins in just a moment's time.
00:02:57 It's then over to the fencing bonus round for the one-on-one bouts with two extra points per bout available for the conclusion of the fencing action.
00:03:06 It's then a short walk to the swimming pool for the heat of the 200-meter freestyle.
00:03:11 Here in Sofia it's a 50-meter pool.
00:03:13 So we could see some slightly slower times than we saw in Budapest just a few weeks ago in the 25-meter pool.
00:03:18 We conclude with the ever-dramatic later on five laps of the 600-meter circuit with four laser shooting routines where the athletes have to shoot, of course,
00:03:25 the five targets. The first over the finish line, as always, is the winner.
00:03:30 This is the new format. It's fast and it's frantic. A new challenge for athletes to overcome.
00:03:34 Welcome one and all to Modern Pentathlon 2023.
00:03:40 Live shots from the riding arena and you can see the sun hats are finally out.
00:03:47 It's been replaced by the umbrellas. And it's myself, James Zanidakis and EOPM analyst Mariam Amur.
00:03:58 Also a Egyptian athlete, we'll get her thoughts.
00:04:02 But before we do that, let's just take a look at the ranking round, which has already taken place.
00:04:06 Massive points have already been decided and Valentin Pras has been on fire.
00:04:13 27 victories has put him top of the pile.
00:04:19 And you can see Fraser just in a battle there, but the ranking round took place, as mentioned, a couple of days ago.
00:04:27 Jihan Li in second place has 25 victories.
00:04:31 Valentin Pras with that 27 victories has gained 260 points.
00:04:36 And looking a bit further down, Todor Mikhailov is looking to taste glory in his own event here in front of the local Bulgarian crowd.
00:04:50 Morfindog looking a little bit perplexed there, but he's in and amongst it inside.
00:04:55 That's top five. You can see the scores there on your screens.
00:04:59 Valentin Pras leads and those are the chasing pack below him. We'll go into more detail as the conversation continues.
00:05:07 Building up, of course, to our first discipline, the riding, which is live here from Sofia.
00:05:13 And we will see who we think possibly from that screen could catch up a little bit later on in the competition.
00:05:20 So we are beginning our coverage then from the riding arena.
00:05:25 And there you can see the first discipline about to begin.
00:05:34 So we move straight on to our first rider and we welcome Mariam to the commentary box.
00:05:39 Mariam, if the women's final is anything to go by, this could be a really great event.
00:05:43 Yeah, I mean, we had quite the adrenaline rush this morning and I believe the men's is shaping up to be quite an exciting one as well.
00:05:53 Seems like so much effort getting back into that zone.
00:05:56 But we have our first rider in the course, Shui Lu on Picasso from China.
00:06:03 Shui Lu then, as Mariam mentioned, on
00:06:09 Picasso, our first horse, and off he goes and is off to a good start.
00:06:16 Makes it past the first double obstacles over towards five. And this is a clean start from the Chinese athletes.
00:06:23 Good pace, good strides. Slight wobble on the way into that run, but
00:06:30 no bother.
00:06:32 Shui Lu is currently 65 points off first place. A clear ride could go a long way towards bumping him up the rankings.
00:06:41 He's doing good so far.
00:06:43 Paces good, strides are good.
00:06:46 His balance is good. He's centering the horse perfectly. But one knockdown there.
00:06:55 Well, he gets away with no knockdown. Not too bad. Yeah, that's a great score
00:07:00 from Lu and that is a 2.93.
00:07:04 Near perfect. Just the one knockdown.
00:07:08 And
00:07:10 he has got off to a good start.
00:07:18 Hind legs lagging a bit. That's why that knockdown happened.
00:07:23 But we're going to move on to our next athlete.
00:07:26 Hugo Floro
00:07:29 is next up on the course.
00:07:32 Hugo Floro was bronze at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games.
00:07:42 So let's have a look how Hugo gets on.
00:07:45 Straight line into the first obstacle. Clears that.
00:07:51 Over towards two. Skims it, but
00:07:54 that's fine.
00:07:57 Shows you the fine margins, doesn't it, when you clip the obstacle like that.
00:08:01 Over towards three. The first obstacle of the course clears that.
00:08:03 4 A and B.
00:08:05 He's just about got... Oh yeah.
00:08:08 Talk to us about what happened there, Marion.
00:08:10 Yeah, entrance into that double wasn't perfection and
00:08:14 that's what caused that B obstacle to knock over.
00:08:19 But it's going to be a fine ride if he just manages with that one knockdown.
00:08:25 He has, of course, a lot to make up for, but we're approaching 7 A and B and a refusal there.
00:08:31 Tight line.
00:08:34 Turned into that.
00:08:36 So it's 7 A that he's refused. So he's going to have to come right back round again and try and...
00:08:41 That's a second refusal.
00:08:43 So only one more remains and then he will be eliminated.
00:08:46 So 27 off the score and time is now ticking.
00:08:52 After two refusals, you can skip the obstacle.
00:08:56 So over towards 9.
00:08:59 We'll have to put some pace into that horse to get him through that final fence.
00:09:03 Here we go. The obstacle 10.
00:09:05 Cleared. So it's 44 off the score.
00:09:08 So it's a 2.66.
00:09:11 It's not going to be enough for Ugo.
00:09:15 But I guess just him making this final is a big achievement.
00:09:18 It's his first final. Absolutely.
00:09:21 He's a young athlete. A lot to look forward to.
00:09:24 Yeah, you have to, uh, you have to look at the positive sometimes, don't you?
00:09:29 Yeah, I mean, uh,
00:09:31 shining in the midst of those top four French athletes is a hard task.
00:09:36 But he's shown here in Sofia.
00:09:40 Another young athlete in the field, Mottaz Mohamed of Egypt.
00:09:45 Mottaz, one of your teammates.
00:09:48 Struggling a little bit here.
00:09:51 Just needs to relax a bit.
00:09:54 Give that horse the confidence it needs to get this momentum of the course starting.
00:10:00 He has 30 seconds to make his first fence.
00:10:04 You'd rather get this out the way now, wouldn't you?
00:10:08 It happened midway through the ride.
00:10:14 And we're, seems to have the horse in control now.
00:10:18 Heading to his first obstacle.
00:10:20 He does have to put some pace into that horse, not to refuse the fence.
00:10:28 There we go. First one cleared.
00:10:30 Good recovery.
00:10:33 Bit of a tight line into two, but makes it.
00:10:35 He has to stick right by the barriers there going into three.
00:10:38 It is a tight line.
00:10:40 Going to come out on the edge, but makes it.
00:10:45 So Mottaz Mohamed has recovered then from that rather shaky start.
00:10:50 He's got the horse under control and now looks to be putting together a really nice ride.
00:10:54 Bit of an early step up there by Mottaz, but manages perfectly to rebalance right before that blue fence.
00:11:03 So here we go. 7 A.M.B.
00:11:07 Clears A, clears B.
00:11:10 So just three more to go and it's a clear ride.
00:11:13 It's slow. He's losing time, but rather that than refusals and knockdowns.
00:11:19 So every second now is going to take a point off of his score.
00:11:22 Two still to go. This could be reasonably costly.
00:11:25 As long as he doesn't knock down obstacle 10, then it won't be a bad score at all.
00:11:29 There we go. Finishes the course and celebrates because that was quite heart in your mouth moment there for Mottaz.
00:11:36 And it's a 2.84.
00:11:39 That's pretty good from Mottaz and you can see the big cheer at the end there.
00:11:45 Night in Cairo earlier this year, which was his first senior competition.
00:11:52 He's under 19 world champion, so definitely one for the future.
00:11:57 A very, very solid Egyptian team. They've not brought out their strongest athletes.
00:12:02 You haven't got the likes of Mohamed Shaban, Ahmed Hamed, Mohamed El Ghandi.
00:12:11 Or am I forgetting someone? Ahmed El Ghandi.
00:12:15 I was talking to a silver medalist.
00:12:17 You're good friends with him, aren't you? Yeah.
00:12:20 So here we go.
00:12:23 Sorry, I forgot the silver medalist there. Just joking.
00:12:26 Right, back on course with Richard Boretsky.
00:12:32 He was 10th in Ankara, 6th in Budapest.
00:12:37 Boretsky's been pretty solid this year, it has to be said.
00:12:40 I can hear the revving of cars in the distance. Hopefully it doesn't distract the horse.
00:12:44 Richard Boretsky hasn't let it affect him.
00:12:48 15th place overall.
00:12:51 And it's going clear.
00:12:54 Distraction is in the background, it's just part of this sport.
00:12:58 You have to deal with it.
00:13:05 Good entrance into 7 A.M.B.
00:13:11 He's gone up three obstacles.
00:13:15 He was almost going to stand up too early there, but managed to save himself.
00:13:20 And this is loose towards the end, but gets the job done.
00:13:26 And in doing so, becomes the first perfect score.
00:13:30 300 for Richard Boretsky. Great stuff.
00:13:33 It may look rocky, but it was a 300 from Richard Boretsky.
00:13:37 Sun is shining here in Sofia, finally after that women's final.
00:13:43 First time we've had sunshine this week.
00:13:47 Perfect weather conditions for a pentathlon.
00:13:56 So Balashev is being called into the arena.
00:14:03 Italian coaches there just watching from afar.
00:14:08 Richard Boretsky just got off his horse and walking towards his bag changing for the fencing bonus round.
00:14:16 Which is coming in just a few minutes time.
00:14:22 So we are tactically positioned inside the judges tent here.
00:14:26 And there's discussions going on.
00:14:29 I don't know whether or not I can reveal the exact nature of the conversations.
00:14:35 But it sounds like Balashev has requested to change his horse.
00:14:43 So Balashev is nowhere to be seen at the moment.
00:14:54 And here comes Balashev.
00:15:00 So he's here.
00:15:04 I mean, there's a lot of discussions going on in the judges tent as to what was going on there.
00:15:11 But Balashev is here and we can only talk about what we can see.
00:15:17 And Balashev, who was 12th in Budapest.
00:15:32 So a good start then by Balashev.
00:15:35 So we think he's on horse 8.
00:15:39 Kevor, but I'm not entirely sure.
00:15:42 Anyway, it's been a good start. He's not had any knockdowns.
00:15:44 So whatever is happening with the horse is not disrupting his competition.
00:15:49 And that's the main thing. So Zheb
00:15:52 cleanly around these first few parts of the course.
00:15:56 Just a reminder that he was 12th in Budapest just a couple of weeks ago.
00:16:01 You see how he's pulling his shoulders back,
00:16:04 tightening up those reins so the horse can see the next obstacle.
00:16:09 Has to get ready for the jump.
00:16:14 This is looking very clean over towards 9.
00:16:17 He's a strong laser runner as well. He is, yeah.
00:16:20 300 could go a long way here. Really could.
00:16:22 And that is what he has got.
00:16:25 Clear round for Balashev. No knockdowns.
00:16:28 No time penalties.
00:16:32 So it is a perfect 300 for Balashev.
00:16:38 Marat Grich up next on horse 7.
00:16:45 Marat Grich was 7th in World Cup Final last year.
00:16:52 Runs in the 2020 and 24 European Championships.
00:16:58 Taking more of a standing stance.
00:17:02 More upright, isn't he?
00:17:06 So just more pressure on the foot, less on the actual saddle.
00:17:15 55 points off the lead.
00:17:18 I tell you what, everything's looking good for Valentin Pramat at the moment,
00:17:22 but it could all come unstuck in the riding. You just never know.
00:17:26 So it's a calm and clean ride by Grich so far.
00:17:33 Seems a bit slow, but it's OK.
00:17:36 As long as no jump penalties are sustained.
00:17:40 Should be a good run by Grich. And we're heading on to 7 a.m. B.
00:17:47 This could potentially be our third perfect score in a row.
00:17:51 Marat Grich now with just two obstacles left.
00:17:56 Clears 9, over towards 10.
00:18:01 And done and dusted. It is a third perfect score in a row.
00:18:07 Consecutively what I had.
00:18:13 So up next, it is Christopher Paz of France.
00:18:18 12th in Ankara, 4th in last year's World Championships, 5th in Albana.
00:18:24 But it's Cairo he's had his most success. Gold in 2022, gold in 2018.
00:18:31 Was a silver medalist in Rome in 2016.
00:18:34 He's won his fair share of medals, but has never won a medal in the new format.
00:18:38 Could that be about to change today? Let's find out.
00:18:42 First thing, he's got to get past this riding course. Off we go.
00:18:45 Clears obstacle 1. Straight over 2.
00:18:48 Right hand turn. Looping round. Quite a sharp right turn.
00:18:52 You've got to get that angle right.
00:18:55 Into 3, which he has just about got away with.
00:18:59 And it's double obstacles 4 and he needs to rebalance here.
00:19:02 This is going to be a refusal.
00:19:04 And he felt that coming as he headed into 3.
00:19:06 He was all out of shape. So it's a refusal for Pat.
00:19:09 And he's going to have to reassess himself here and try and get himself back on course.
00:19:14 It's going to be another refusal.
00:19:17 That's a knockdown and a refusal. That is an expensive obstacle.
00:19:21 I have to move on though.
00:19:23 Yeah, you feel Christopher Pat's competition is coming apart in front of our very eyes here.
00:19:29 Time wise, he can move past 4A and 4B.
00:19:33 Mariam's moving her hands around frantically, implying he's got to get a move on here.
00:19:37 I mean, he's losing precious time at the moment.
00:19:40 But can he continue his ride to the end?
00:19:42 I mean, we've seen some struggles with Jäger-Serpenaiti, but she managed to finish that course.
00:19:47 And that's what he's going to be looking for here.
00:19:50 Just damage control.
00:19:52 Yeah, it's not working out for him, his ride, is it?
00:19:55 7A and 7B.
00:19:57 Maybe starting to find a bit of rhythm now, but it is, as Mariam rightly said, damage control.
00:20:03 He's still got a few to go.
00:20:06 Here we go then. 30 seconds left.
00:20:16 And one more knockdown for good measure.
00:20:21 So 34 points taken off his score for knockdowns.
00:20:27 So we're hearing now that he's exceeded the time allowed.
00:20:37 Yeah, he was exceeded the time that was allowed.
00:20:40 So it's an elimination for Christopher Patt.
00:20:43 Well, that was a messy ride for the French athletes.
00:20:46 But we wish Christopher Patt the best of luck, because he's a great athlete
00:20:51 and will no doubt come back stronger in his next competition.
00:20:55 Up next is Christian Zillikens, who is looking to pick up his first World Cup medal since 2019
00:21:02 when he won gold in Czechoslovakia.
00:21:05 He was a gold medalist at the Indoor Championships last year as well,
00:21:07 so went into that season looking in pretty good form.
00:21:09 He has been struggling with a couple of injuries over the past couple of years as well.
00:21:13 He also had a baby for good measure as well.
00:21:15 So Christian Zillikens balancing the life of fatherhood and athletes.
00:21:21 His adorable young baby is here and currently being looked after by mum,
00:21:28 Annika, who competed earlier this morning.
00:21:34 So Christian.
00:21:36 He does seem a bit off balance, but he manages him beautifully and centers him again, rebalances.
00:21:44 He's a very experienced rider, so I'm not surprised.
00:21:49 Over towards 7A and 7B.
00:21:52 The German team do have some great riders.
00:21:58 We'll see Marvin Dogg later as well.
00:22:02 Over towards 9.
00:22:05 And 9 is good.
00:22:08 And there we go. Just the one, two points off of his score.
00:22:15 It's a 2.98 for Christian Zillikens. No worries about that.
00:22:19 He can make that up in the Fencing Buenos in a couple of moments time.
00:22:22 And a near perfect score from Christian Zillikens. Good stuff.
00:22:26 And here's the sum of those results.
00:22:28 We have a grand tour of the Scoopy.
00:22:30 We have a winner, Pierre Dejardin.
00:22:33 Seven out of ten, he's a good French sport rider.
00:22:37 Our new winner, getting proud, Pierre Dejardin, riding a P3.
00:22:43 So up next, we move on with Pierre Dejardin,
00:22:55 who is one of four French athletes in this final.
00:23:01 We've already seen Christopher Pate and Hugo Florau.
00:23:04 Not had much luck, the French athletes, but here we go.
00:23:08 We are continuing with Pierre Dejardin, and he's off to a good start.
00:23:13 It's easier adopting what we call a driving seat style,
00:23:19 which is basically sitting and moving with the horse along his galloping pace,
00:23:24 making him a bit faster, a bit more keen on that jump.
00:23:28 Tight turn into 7a and b, but makes it happen.
00:23:31 Gives him a quick check with the whip there, but nothing too dramatic.
00:23:38 That is really good from Pierre Dejardin,
00:23:44 and considering he is a strong runner as well,
00:23:46 this is going to be amazing for Pierre Dejardin if he does manage a 300,
00:23:49 which he does! Perfect 300 for Pierre Dejardin.
00:23:53 Pierre Dejardin changing the luck of the French here in this riding discipline.
00:24:00 Here in the men's final, he is the third out of four French athletes,
00:24:04 and Valentin Pras, who is in first place, will take great comfort from that.
00:24:09 Perfect score from Pierre Dejardin.
00:24:12 And up next is Gergely Legos on horse three, Lady Ballerina.
00:24:18 Lady Ballerina, that's a pretty catchy name.
00:24:24 Pretty catchy red jacket there by Gergely Legos.
00:24:30 Anyway, here we go.
00:24:33 Off we go then. Gergely Legos is alive and kicking, and we are on the course.
00:24:43 With Legos, three through to 4A, a little wobble into 4A,
00:24:49 and there was the knockdown. You could see that coming, couldn't you?
00:24:52 Yeah, I mean, it seemed like he was going to go for a refusal,
00:24:56 but just that last minute.
00:25:00 Oh, OK. Well, he's doing well.
00:25:03 Yeah, you can see there's issues here, but he's overcoming them,
00:25:05 which is one of the important things about riding.
00:25:09 So towards 7A, done. 7B, rebalances himself well, looks to the right, turns right.
00:25:17 Time-wise, he's looking a little slow, but I think he's going to get away with it, actually.
00:25:21 Here we go, carrying the speed through then towards 9, and actually this is quite a quick ride.
00:25:25 Over to 10. One to go.
00:25:29 Slow in the middle section of the course, but quick in the back end,
00:25:32 and it's a very impressive 2.93 from Gergely Legos.
00:25:37 It's really important during the ride that you put your mistakes behind you
00:25:43 and whatever happened earlier on the course, just put that in past and focus on the next.
00:25:49 Senses, and that's exactly what he did.
00:25:53 So, moving through this competition nicely now.
00:25:58 We're into the top eight.
00:26:00 Miles Pillage, who had a topsy-turvy semifinal with what was initially deemed as a false start in the swim.
00:26:09 And I'll tell you what, Miles Pillage in eighth place is in a very, very good position.
00:26:13 It'll be interesting to see his battle in the pool with Joseph Chirin up.
00:26:16 It'll be an exciting heat too, unless either of them drop down or move up, which is possible.
00:26:21 Miles took a very, very narrow line through that obstacle there.
00:26:26 He's a good rider there, so he's recovered and over towards three.
00:26:30 Battling a little bit with the horse here as he tries to get the straight line into A.
00:26:34 Is he going to get it through? And B.
00:26:36 Oh, yeah, knocks down B. And again, you felt that coming, didn't you?
00:26:39 He looked uncomfortable on the horse.
00:26:40 So, seven points off of Miles Pillage. He's knocked him down to ninth place now.
00:26:46 The horse does seem to want to deviate from around those fences, but he's actually doing his job really well, Miles.
00:26:53 Loses a lot of pace. Yeah, he's getting slower.
00:26:57 Gets away with 7A. This is a scrappy ride, but it's getting there.
00:27:01 It's getting the job done. It's just one knockdown so far.
00:27:05 He's got the complicated part of this course done.
00:27:07 It's now just a straight ride around towards nine and ten.
00:27:11 Nine's cleared. This to get away with a 2.93 for Miles Pillage.
00:27:14 Takes a wide line through and gets over it.
00:27:17 Great stuff from Pillage. It's a 2.93.
00:27:20 He was battling there and battled well.
00:27:23 And you'll never complain with a 2.93, will you?
00:27:26 If offered a 2.93 before the ride, you take it every single time, right?
00:27:30 Yeah, obviously. It's better than messing up your entire ride.
00:27:34 Just one knockdown won't cost you that much.
00:27:37 He's going to potentially make up some time in the pool as well.
00:27:39 Yes. So, Miles Pillage still on course for potentially his first ever World Cup medal here.
00:27:44 Joseph Chung has won a fair few himself, hasn't he?
00:27:47 The highest ranked athlete in the world. Current Olympic champion.
00:27:50 Current world champion. Winner of multiple World Cup gold medals.
00:27:55 And is underway here with his ride in seventh place.
00:27:59 Hasn't had a great start to 2023, but has only competed in one competition,
00:28:03 which was in Ankara. And it was the ride where his competition came unstuck.
00:28:08 So Chung just focusing here. He didn't look particularly comfortable in the warmer period.
00:28:12 It has to be said. Knocks down 9A.
00:28:15 Oh my goodness me. That doesn't count as a knockdown, does it?
00:28:17 He got away with that. Skimming the edge of 4B.
00:28:21 That's the thing about Joe, though. This horse seems to be taking the outside line
00:28:24 and willing to refuse that obstacle. But he does put it back into the center and
00:28:29 He's a great rider. Yeah.
00:28:31 So well done, Joe. Pushing through over towards now 7A.
00:28:35 Clear 7B. Clear. And this looks like it could be a 2.93.
00:28:39 He's got to bring it home now. Not too much pressure.
00:28:43 Over towards 8A. 9A straight ahead.
00:28:47 He's just got to bring it back round now. One more to go.
00:28:51 And this would be a very solid 2.93 for the Olympic gold medalist.
00:28:55 A little bit of a wobble into it. But it's a 2.92.
00:29:00 He takes one time penalty and blows out a sigh of relief.
00:29:04 A 2.92 for the best number one ranked athletes in the world.
00:29:10 That's a good recovery from Ankara. I mean, in Ankara, he was eliminated.
00:29:15 We don't know exactly what happened with the horse there, but good recovery from him.
00:29:20 What you don't ever want is to get two eliminations back to back.
00:29:24 Yeah, in back to back competitions. I think he regained his confidence now.
00:29:28 I'm looking forward to seeing potentially a good battle between Joseph Chung and Marvin Dogleister.
00:29:31 And those two were a good rivalry back in 2019.
00:29:35 They were gold and silver and proud gold and silver at World Cup final.
00:29:38 And Marvin is now in a solid position, the best position he's been in all year, in sixth place.
00:29:44 Giving it his all at this competition, really trying to put the pressure on the athletes higher up.
00:29:49 He seems to... His stirrup is somewhat done.
00:29:54 Yeah, he's lost his right stirrup. This becomes very complicated.
00:29:57 Can he get it back in at this point? He has to.
00:30:00 I don't know if he's going to. I mean, if he completes this ride without a stirrup, then he's doing very well indeed.
00:30:06 So he's lost his right stirrup, Marvin Dog, but he's managing to get himself around this course nicely.
00:30:12 Still got a very tricky part coming up now. 7A and 7B, where it's that tight left-hand turn.
00:30:16 He's got to get this right. Clears A, holding on for dear life.
00:30:20 Clears B. This is brilliant from Marvin Dog.
00:30:22 He does have potentially the space and time to get it back in, but he seems to opt for not to.
00:30:28 Oh, his heart in your mouth moment here. Two to go.
00:30:31 And this would be an incredible 300 for Marvin Dog.
00:30:34 Only one stirrup. Heading towards the final obstacle.
00:30:37 Oh, and he's done it. That is superb from Marvin Dog.
00:30:41 In the face of adversity, he has managed to get himself a perfect 300.
00:30:48 And Marvin Dog deserves a run at the medals after that fantastic performance.
00:30:53 We can breathe a sigh of relief. That was intense.
00:30:56 Yeah, I mean, I don't understand the option of not putting it back in,
00:31:01 but I guess he was more comfortable continuing on that way.
00:31:04 I guess he was so locked in, he didn't want to just look down, take his eye off the course.
00:31:08 And it's worked out for him. So well done to Marvin.
00:31:11 Up next, we have Eslam Hamad, who's going very, very well here.
00:31:15 He's a bit of a mixed relay expert. He's won a gold before in Cairo.
00:31:21 This would be his first ever podium if he was to carry on at this pace.
00:31:25 What do you think as his teammate? Mariam, do you think he has a chance?
00:31:29 Yeah, I mean, he's potentially in for a chance of a medal.
00:31:32 He just has to put on a good ride. It seems good so far. A bit slow.
00:31:38 But yeah, a bit off the center there, but seems to be doing fine so far.
00:31:43 On to number five.
00:31:49 It's a bit of a wobbly ride, but it's OK. No knockdowns so far.
00:31:54 Eslam Hamad, currently 25 points off the lead over towards 7A and 7B.
00:31:59 A clear and B clear. So this is the tricky part of the course done.
00:32:04 It's now just a straight ride home. Can he keep it together and score another perfect 300?
00:32:09 It's more and more pressure to get a good score because we have had some consistently very high scores in this ride.
00:32:15 What it looks like for a second, he might have got a knockdown there, but I don't think he did.
00:32:18 It might go a second or two over the time limit. It does.
00:32:21 One second over, but that's fine. It's a 2.99 for Eslam Hamad. Brilliant ride.
00:32:26 And you can see age ranges young and old have turned up to watch this competition.
00:32:30 It's the back figure. Yeah, sun's out. This is what happens, isn't it?
00:32:34 Bulgaria has finally delivered in terms of the weather.
00:32:38 Finally got a nice day here and it's come at the best possible time on Super Saturday.
00:32:43 Taishu Sato is next up on the arena.
00:32:50 Taishu Sato is in fourth place overall, seventh in Cairo beginning of this year.
00:32:56 He was a silver medalist in mixed relay in Los Angeles 2017.
00:33:00 This would be his first individual medal and you feel that is coming.
00:33:08 He's a likable character, Sato. We saw him on the Fencing Bonus Round stage in the semifinal with a quite endearing routine.
00:33:17 We'll go through that when he does appear in a few minutes time.
00:33:21 So Taishu Sato making his way around this course.
00:33:27 Impressed with what you're seeing so far, Marion? Yeah, I am. I mean, he's pulling off a good ride.
00:33:31 He's his style on the horse. You can tell a good rider from the way they're poised and sitting down on the horse
00:33:36 and how they navigate that horse throughout the course. And he's doing a beautiful job so far.
00:33:41 A good relationship between this horse and the rider. It's evident in the rider.
00:33:45 We're about to see another perfect score. We've seen quite a few so far.
00:33:48 Last one was Marvin Dogg who managed to do it with one stirrup missing.
00:33:52 And brilliant from Taishu Sato. It's a perfect score on Eddie Keep Cool and Taisho certainly kept cool on that ride.
00:34:05 He's definitely another contender for that medal.
00:34:08 We saw him during semifinals come across that line like it was nothing.
00:34:12 Had people cheering him on and hopefully he can repeat that today.
00:34:18 Toda Mikhailov all localize on this Bulgarian star.
00:34:29 Mikhailov on horse 18 Nostradamus was 12th in the Hungarian Indoors last year. 12th in Albana last year.
00:34:39 A bit fast but quite well so far. It's just a bit tricky to navigate a horse that fast.
00:34:48 It does seem to have the pace right now.
00:34:51 Sardor is going well here. He's very pacey, isn't he?
00:34:56 This horse seems to like to be ridden fast. It seems to be enjoying itself as well.
00:35:00 You can often tell from the body language of the horse. Clatters through that obstacle though.
00:35:04 So that's dropped him down to fourth place. We're not going to see a perfect score.
00:35:10 Some reckless jumping but at least no time penalties.
00:35:16 Oh, and just like that it's an elimination.
00:35:21 He's OK. He's up on his feet.
00:35:24 And just like that and he's comforting the horse as well.
00:35:28 But sad to see Toda
00:35:32 is eliminated from the ride and in doing so there goes his hopes for a medal
00:35:38 here in Sofia. Many congratulations. He had a fantastic competition.
00:35:42 Holds his head up high and escorting the horse with the utmost care.
00:35:47 And Toda Mikhailov can hold his head up high after a great competition, can't he?
00:35:51 Yeah, he's got a standing ovation for just getting up and
00:35:56 getting out of that course safely.
00:35:59 That is how quickly your competition can come unraveled though.
00:36:02 Two still to go. Ji-Hun Lee of Korea next up on the course
00:36:08 was a mixed relay gold medalist in Ankara last year. Individual silver at the Asian Senior Championships last year.
00:36:15 Looking to pick up his first World Cup medal. He's the highest ranked Korean athlete.
00:36:20 Korea already with one silver medal today in
00:36:24 Xiumingshong in the women's individuals. Can they make it two out of two or even one better?
00:36:30 Ji-Hun Lee is the closest athlete now to Valentin Pradze.
00:36:34 Just 10 points behind the stink stand. Can Ji-Hun Lee end this ride perfectly?
00:36:40 He started it well, leaning back quite far, isn't he?
00:36:43 It's a awkward style. Mariam's grimacing a little bit here.
00:36:46 He's just got a fast pace as well, just as Toda's horse
00:36:51 did, but he's trying to control that horse. A little bit too much of pulling could actually
00:36:57 cause the horse to refuse the fence altogether, but he seems to be getting on just fine.
00:37:01 He's making his way through it, isn't it? So 7A and B.
00:37:05 Clears A with a kick of the back legs from the horse and clears B.
00:37:09 One way or another, he is getting around this course effectively.
00:37:12 Three to go for Ji-Hun Lee as he looks to put pressure on Valentin Pradze of France.
00:37:20 A little hesitation through to 8A and 9A and clears 10A and there we go.
00:37:27 It is indeed a perfect 300 for Ji-Hun Lee.
00:37:32 And all eyes now on Valentin Pradze.
00:37:42 And this is where the competition gets intense. Our lead athlete
00:37:50 with a 10-point head start. He's got his sunglasses on.
00:37:54 Valentin Pradze is looking as cool as you like.
00:38:00 Here we go then. Valentin Pradze, all of France is with you.
00:38:11 Eighth in Ankara, fifth in Cairo. His results so far this year was sixth at World Cup Final last year.
00:38:16 Sixth in Ankara last year. Looking for his first medal since World Cup Final gold in 2021.
00:38:22 He's in a great position with 560 points.
00:38:26 Taking that standing stance and you can see his heels just pointed towards the ground
00:38:32 and he's pushing onto those feet as to balance himself regardless of what that horse is doing.
00:38:38 And he's doing an incredible job at it. Looks comfortable, doesn't he?
00:38:41 Looks like a man who is on a one-way path to a medal here at this competition.
00:38:46 Valentin Pradze of France. 10 points ahead of Ji-Hun Lee.
00:38:50 Looking to get a perfect score to match that of Lee who is currently in second place.
00:38:57 Still a long way to go in this competition. Still a bit of a way to go in this ride.
00:39:01 Clear 7A and 7B. The tricky part of this course is done.
00:39:04 It's now three obstacles to glory for a perfect score for Valentin Pradze.
00:39:08 Over 8. Two to go. It's a knockdown on 8. So still two to go. He still would lead.
00:39:13 Oh, it's another knockdown.
00:39:15 This is getting expensive. One more.
00:39:18 And he finishes it. So Valentin Pradze has lost his advantage.
00:39:23 It's a 2.86. You wouldn't have anticipated that in the final stages of the course.
00:39:30 A slight lapse in concentration for Pradze.
00:39:34 He's still in with a good chance, but he's lost his advantage.
00:39:39 I think he just was too confident at the end there.
00:39:43 Loosened his reins a bit, which made the horse's pace a bit faster,
00:39:49 causing him to take one extra step and just knocking down those...
00:39:54 What I will say in the interest of the excitement of this competition,
00:39:58 that has opened things up nicely as we look at the standings.
00:40:00 Ji-Hun Lee is on 5.50. Valentin Pradze is on 5.46.
00:40:06 Saito on 5.45. Ten further back is Dog and another point further back is Hamad.
00:40:11 Then you've got a bit of a drop-off to Joseph Chung, who is in 6th place,
00:40:14 but will make a real battle of things. He's such a fast swimmer.
00:40:17 You expect Joseph Chung to bring himself back into this.
00:40:20 Pierre Jordan, Gurgly Regos, Miles Pillage, another fast swimmer,
00:40:23 could start knocking on the door.
00:40:25 There might be 37 points separating 1st and 9th,
00:40:29 but do not expect that to be the case later on in the competition.
00:40:33 This is closing up nicely as we move on to the next page of standings
00:40:38 and see who is going to be pressing.
00:40:40 Miles Pillage on 5.13. What about the second page? Let's have a look.
00:40:43 Christian Zillikens on 5.08. So another five points back.
00:40:46 Balashek, a quick runner, could push later on in the competition.
00:40:49 It's all open, it's all for grabs as we move forward in this competition.
00:40:55 So that concludes the riding discipline.
00:41:01 And it was as intriguing and entertaining as ever.
00:41:05 Let's take a look back at the highlights.
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00:41:52 [music]
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00:42:06 So those are the final moments from the riding and exciting discipline.
00:42:20 As we move on in this competition, we say goodbye to the riding arena
00:42:24 and we have the short walk as we're about to see
00:42:27 from the riding arena then to the fencing bonus round stage.
00:42:30 Let's see how it happens.
00:42:33 So there you go, the riding arena is done and dusted.
00:42:36 And that's a pretty accurate distance how things are in this competition.
00:42:40 The fencing bonus round stage is set up, two points per bout.
00:42:44 And if you are the likes of Valentin Praj, who will be the highest ranked fencer,
00:42:49 could pick up four points. I'm sure you'd love to pick up that four points
00:42:52 and move back into first place. Would be exciting, wouldn't it?
00:42:56 Who is your favorite for gold, by the way?
00:42:58 My favorite for gold at this point, oh, it's difficult to say.
00:43:02 Hmm. I'm still going to back Valentin Praj, actually.
00:43:06 I think he's a strong athlete.
00:43:10 You know, talking amongst the media team before we went on this broadcast,
00:43:13 a lot of athletes were sort of named as who potentially could win gold.
00:43:18 But I think Valentin Praj was sort of the popular decision at that point.
00:43:21 He's obviously lost a couple of points from that fence,
00:43:24 but it seems hard to look past Ji-Hun Lee as well.
00:43:27 Saito, let's not rule him out, but it's so early on in the competition,
00:43:30 I think it's a little bit silly to make predictions at the moment.
00:43:34 But I'm going to ask you, Marianne, what about you? What do you think?
00:43:37 I'm not going to make any predictions.
00:43:41 You're not going to reveal your answer? No.
00:43:44 I actually have no idea. I mean, it's pretty tight.
00:43:49 Maybe after the swimming, things can open up and we might have a better idea.
00:43:52 Valentin Praj is a reasonably quick swimmer, as far as I know. He's a bit slower.
00:43:57 Yeah, I think he's slower than some of the athletes we can see,
00:44:01 like the likes of Joseph Chang and Miles Pilich.
00:44:04 Yeah, we know those two are quick. Marvin Dogg is not the fastest swimmer in the world.
00:44:08 Ji-Hun Lee? Actually, not sure.
00:44:11 Memory serves, correct. He's reasonably quick on the swimming course as well.
00:44:15 We were meant to have Charlie Brown from the British team coming into the commentary box at this point.
00:44:20 I should note it was the gap between the fencing and the swimming that we were going to have Charlie Brown pop in the sail.
00:44:25 He's flown out all the way to Sofia to take part in the mixed relay tomorrow.
00:44:33 And he requested to come on UIPM TV. We love that.
00:44:36 If you are tuned in or if you are somewhere in the grounds and you want to come on to UIPM TV,
00:44:41 we welcome one and all to come and contribute to the show.
00:44:46 It's always good to hear from different athletes and to hear how their competition is going on.
00:44:51 We heard from Inés Uds, who was taking on the role of babysitter a little bit earlier.
00:44:56 And Christian Jamiro from Spain came on to tell us about how his competition had gone.
00:45:05 You'd think that Charlie Brown was here witnessing Corenza Bryson take gold earlier this morning.
00:45:12 He's going to be happy to compete with her in the team relay.
00:45:14 Yeah, that's true. Corenza Bryson is going to be back in action tomorrow alongside Charlie Brown.
00:45:20 And yeah, it'll be an interesting dynamic those two.
00:45:27 Christopher Pats is being called to the bonus round arena.
00:45:32 Summoned by Rob. Yeah.
00:45:34 I'm not sure why, though, because he's I mean, he's got a bit of a way.
00:45:38 First two athletes and they do just have to do their final equipment check just before the bonus round starts.
00:45:44 So they just want to get out of that.
00:45:47 They want to get that out of the way before the bonus round starts.
00:45:50 That's not have any distractions in between.
00:45:53 So you might be able to hear the low rumbling of machinery in the background.
00:45:57 That's because the short you'd call that piece of equipment.
00:46:01 But it basically it's like a flatness, like a roller. Yeah, like a big roller steamroller.
00:46:06 There's no steam coming out of it. I don't think it's a steamroller.
00:46:09 Just call it a roller. Just a roller. Yeah.
00:46:11 Just leveling the grounds, readying it for the laser run after that.
00:46:16 We are going to build the laser run shortly for the conclusion of this final.
00:46:24 There goes the roller. There goes my eardrum.
00:46:32 I'm sure you can hear it now.
00:46:38 It is interesting to see that the different parts that go into getting this competition up and running.
00:46:47 Off it goes. So here we go.
00:46:49 We are nearly ready to start our fencing bonus round.
00:47:04 Xu Hualu of China is up first Asian senior champion last year.
00:47:10 2021 World Cup final bronze medalist in Hungary, Elvin Sikesfereva.
00:47:18 Hugo Floral will be up against him.
00:47:20 Bronze at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games.
00:47:23 First at the 2020 European Junior Championships in Barcelona.
00:47:26 16th at the Budapest Indoors earlier this year.
00:47:29 Currently in 17th place.
00:47:31 If he can go one better, it would definitely mark his best results of the season so far.
00:47:36 Floral versus Lu, 15 seconds to go.
00:47:40 And there is the touch from Hugo.
00:47:43 And Hugo picks up the first victory of this fencing bonus round.
00:47:47 A bit scrappy but finished it off with a nice flash.
00:47:53 Have you ever thought about coaching, Marion?
00:47:56 Coaching? That's interesting.
00:47:58 I've been involved in many areas of the sport, not too much in coaching, but maybe.
00:48:05 Never say never kind of girl.
00:48:07 Never say never.
00:48:14 Doing a great job in the commentary box though, so we're not going to let you go quite yet.
00:48:19 Marion's been joining us throughout the course of the season and will be back for the World Championships in Bath.
00:48:25 Hugo Floral versus Moultas Mohamed.
00:48:28 Hugo Floral with that one victory to his name so far.
00:48:33 Hugo Floral, as we've mentioned, bronze medalist of the 2018 Youth Olympic Games.
00:48:38 Moultas Mohamed was ninth in Cairo, his first senior competition.
00:48:41 And Floral gets the touch and makes it two victories, four points for the French athlete.
00:48:47 Moultas Mohamed was trying to deviate Floral from his plan there, but Floral stuck with it, went for that flash and got that touch.
00:48:56 So next up, it is Richard Boretsky in 15th place.
00:49:10 Was 10th in Ankara, 6th in Budapest last year, 7th here in Bulgaria in a different venue in Albina.
00:49:18 Just a centre away from Varna, one of the biggest cities in Bulgaria, and Boretsky gets the touch.
00:49:25 First three seconds.
00:49:27 That was quick by Boretsky.
00:49:29 Still introducing him. Obviously was desperate to get it over and done with because he wanted to battle against his teammate, Balas Yeps.
00:49:35 Who we'll see up next.
00:49:38 12th in Budapest.
00:49:44 World Cup final, 4th place.
00:49:51 No, sorry, he's 8th in... I'm confused because I've made a mistake on my notes here, but he was 4th in Albina last year.
00:49:58 Balas Yeps, bronze in Cairo in the first event of the new format.
00:50:03 It's Boretsky versus Yep.
00:50:08 20 seconds left on the clock.
00:50:11 15 still to go, we're at the halfway stage. Boretsky tries to get down low, perhaps to distract his opponent, but Yep is not distracted and wins the bout.
00:50:39 So up next it is Marek Gryc from the Czech Republic, who is our next athlete to make his way to the fencing bonus round stage.
00:50:54 And Marek Gryc, 7th in World Cup final, 2022.
00:51:00 Up against Balas Yep, Yep already has one victory to his name.
00:51:10 So here we go, the final 20 seconds.
00:51:13 Yep versus Gryc.
00:51:16 Yep is taking that...
00:51:18 Oh, there's a touch from Gryc.
00:51:22 Yep tried to take that lower line, but Gryc did not fall for that, going higher into the chest of Balas Yep with a mid-marche l'angete, somewhere in between.
00:51:43 So Christopher Pats is out next. Christopher Pats with elimination from the riding earlier, so he won't be competitive in this competition, but we'll look to end things on a high.
00:51:56 And he is now up against Marek Gryc, who has that one victory to his name.
00:52:00 Christopher Pats in those bright red shoes, up against Gryc.
00:52:04 20 seconds left on the clock.
00:52:09 And there is the flash forward from Pats.
00:52:13 Gets the touch.
00:52:16 That was fast.
00:52:19 These athletes aren't wasting any time.
00:52:26 So up next is Christian Zilikins, gold medalist from the 2019 Hungary event in Czechoslovakia.
00:52:41 Gold medalist in the indoor championships last year.
00:52:46 I believe Christian Zilikins did not have the best friends in the world, but is midway through the pack right now.
00:52:54 17-1, 18 lost.
00:52:59 Into the final 15 seconds, two of the more experienced athletes out on the course here.
00:53:04 Pat versus Zilikins into the final 10 seconds. Priority is with Zilikins.
00:53:08 Zilikins and Pat both touch at the same time, so it's a double touch with seven still to go.
00:53:13 Pat has to try to apply the pressure now.
00:53:16 The clock is ticking down. Zilikins can perhaps afford to be a little bit more defensive now.
00:53:20 You can see, and there is the touch from Zilikins. It's more offensive rather than defensive.
00:53:25 Yes, sometimes you'd rather not take the risk and go for the offense.
00:53:34 We haven't seen a run thus far.
00:53:42 Pretty much no change in the field.
00:53:44 Ugo Floro, who picked up the only two-pointer so far.
00:53:51 Pierre de Jardin.
00:53:54 I believe in Budapest. Was it in Budapest or Ankara where he picked up a couple extra points in bonus rounds?
00:54:01 It seems to be where his strengths lie.
00:54:06 Pierre de Jardin was sixth in Ankara.
00:54:09 Last year here in Bulgaria was tenth in Albania. Bronze medalist in softair in 2018.
00:54:15 So he's tasted podium success here before.
00:54:19 Might be quite hard from this position, but he's going to give it a go.
00:54:22 Zilikins with the flush forward.
00:54:26 Took that outside line, distracted Pierre de Jardin and went in for the flush in the inside line.
00:54:32 Zilikins into the top ten. Although he was heading into this discipline.
00:54:39 Zilikins is a good laser runner, so you never know. He's not going to rule them out at this point.
00:54:50 So up next it is Gurgly Regos.
00:55:00 Eighth in Budapest last year, ninth in Albania last year, sixth in Cairo last year.
00:55:05 Silver Youth Olympic Games medalist back in 2014.
00:55:10 Looking to halt Zilikins, which he's done.
00:55:16 Christian Zilikins was a bit too fast coming into that attack.
00:55:20 Maybe a bit reckless. Regos took advantage of that and made a touch.
00:55:27 So we're inside the top ten now and it is Myles Pillage up next.
00:55:34 Myles Pillage, 13th in Ankara.
00:55:37 Bronze in mixed relay at the same event.
00:55:41 We had a very, very strong finish to that race from Myles Pillage.
00:55:45 Was gold in mixed relay in the European Championships in 2019.
00:55:49 Silver medalist in mixed relay in Cairo 2017.
00:55:52 Pillage missed most of last year with injury, but is back now and looks very much a stronger athlete on his return.
00:56:00 Regos is deepening that distance a bit, but it's a double touch at 18 seconds.
00:56:06 Myles Pillage is wary that Regos is trying to go for a foot touch here.
00:56:12 This is all just basically distraction for your opponent, trying to get your touch in before your opponent does.
00:56:19 15 seconds on the clock. 15 seconds to go.
00:56:22 Pillage looking to try and pick up his first two points.
00:56:25 Gurglergos trying to double his money to make it four victories.
00:56:29 Regos versus Pillage. Into the last five seconds and Regos finds a way through.
00:56:35 That was a good defense done by Myles Pillage, but Regos determined to get that point.
00:56:41 Fights his blade a little bit, strengthened that blade and gets his touch again against Myles Pillage.
00:56:50 That was a scrappy one, but a good one nonetheless.
00:56:56 So up next is the Olympic gold medalist Joseph Chung.
00:57:02 He won't be up against his teammates. He will be up against Gurglergos, who has two victories to his name.
00:57:11 So Joseph Chung versus Gurglergos.
00:57:15 Joseph Chung with 20 victories in the fencing ranking round.
00:57:21 Regos with 19.
00:57:24 Joseph Chung is a great fencer, but Regos is not messing about today. Makes it a third victory.
00:57:32 We won't see the continuation of that 2019 rivalry between Joseph Chung and Marvin Dogg for now.
00:57:39 Because Chung has been defeated, Regos is on a charge here.
00:57:43 He becomes the highest ranked bonus fencing round athlete with three victories.
00:57:49 So Marvin is on the stage.
00:58:08 Marvin Dogg was a silver medalist at the World Cup final in Tokyo in 2019.
00:58:14 Silver medalist in Prague in 2019.
00:58:19 Was 10th in Budapest last year, but struggled to reach those heights that he reached back in 2019.
00:58:25 But he's going very well in this competition. Got a perfect 300m riding despite losing his right stirrup.
00:58:33 No touch there.
00:58:34 Attacks his opponent but loses his feet.
00:58:36 He's got to try and put an end to this Regos domination if he wants to continue in the fencing bonus round.
00:58:43 22 victories in the fencing ranking round.
00:58:51 Double touch with 12 still to go.
00:58:59 Into the final 10 seconds.
00:59:01 Marvin Dogg with the priority.
00:59:06 And he does get the touch.
00:59:07 He invited Gergely Regos into committing to an attack.
00:59:12 And as you can see, moved up into, well, he was already in fourth place, but has extended that gap.
00:59:19 A perfect 300m from Dogg in.
00:59:22 The riding has proven to be very, very helpful.
00:59:29 It is very easy in those final moments of a bout to just lose focus and go for the touch.
00:59:37 And yeah, a bunch of mistakes do happen there.
00:59:40 And Marvin Dogg took care of that.
00:59:45 So Eslam Hamad is next up against Marvin Dogg.
00:59:56 I think Eslam Hamad is also the world record holder of the bonus round for the men.
01:00:01 I think he was 11 wins in the cash commit.
01:00:08 Go battle this and Hamad wins it.
01:00:19 So Hamad moves just within a point behind Marvin Dogg now.
01:00:24 We're into the top four.
01:00:26 Taisho Seto.
01:00:43 Let's see if we're going to hear that roar again.
01:00:44 Taisho Seto is now on the piste.
01:00:46 He's a very enthusiastic athlete.
01:00:50 There it is.
01:00:51 I love this.
01:00:54 Taisho Seto.
01:00:57 It worked for him in semifinals.
01:01:00 He picked up a few extra victories.
01:01:01 Seto versus Hamad.
01:01:03 Seto with the cry.
01:01:05 He tries to get down low.
01:01:06 Hamad not being easily confused by his opponent here.
01:01:10 He's remaining focused.
01:01:12 World record holder in men's fencing bonus round.
01:01:16 I think they both got away with it a little bit there.
01:01:21 Six seconds still to go.
01:01:23 Eslam Hamad has to go for that attack due to the time priority rule going to Seto's favor.
01:01:29 Six seconds still to go.
01:01:31 Hamad has to attack here and he gets a touch.
01:01:34 So he just pushes him to the back of the piste there.
01:01:37 Seto has no more room to go and goes for the lunge.
01:01:41 That's what happens when Eslam Hamad has two wins on a bonus piste thus far.
01:01:49 I wouldn't be surprised if he makes it all the way to win the whole bonus round.
01:01:54 Strong fencer.
01:01:56 We have Todor Mihaljev next on the piste.
01:02:03 He got an elimination during the ride.
01:02:06 Todor is now just battling for pride.
01:02:12 But he's in front of his home crowd here.
01:02:14 And he's in good shape.
01:02:18 And Hamad makes it three victories.
01:02:22 And he's on a bit of a charge here, it has to be said.
01:02:24 Eslam Hamad is only now five points away from podium position.
01:02:28 I think this is the closest he's been throughout this entire season to being on the podium.
01:02:34 Which is great news for him.
01:02:36 He has to take that chance and not let it go.
01:02:39 I mean, we're almost to the end of this competition.
01:02:44 Eslam Hamad in with a real chance now.
01:02:47 Big screen there from Jihan Lee.
01:02:49 Yeah, Jihan Lee is pumped.
01:02:50 He wants those extra points.
01:02:52 He is top of the pile at the moment, Eslam Hamad.
01:02:59 He'll put pressure on his opponent.
01:03:02 Jihan Lee looks up for this.
01:03:04 Quick footwork.
01:03:05 Looking very light on his feet.
01:03:07 15 stills to go.
01:03:09 Hamad with three victories.
01:03:10 Jihan Lee with the priority.
01:03:12 And there's a flash forward.
01:03:13 It came eventually.
01:03:14 No touch.
01:03:18 Time was eight seconds.
01:03:19 So we're going to reset that back to eight seconds.
01:03:23 I'm not sure they are, you know.
01:03:29 Okay, so we're not resetting the time, but we're continuing on.
01:03:33 Eslam Hamad has to make the move to attack.
01:03:35 And he does, doesn't get it, but goes back with a counter repost into Jihan Lee.
01:03:40 Apparently, judge rules.
01:03:42 No touch.
01:03:44 Four seconds on the clock.
01:03:45 So we thought that was over there.
01:03:46 Four still to go.
01:03:48 Eslam Hamad.
01:03:50 That was out of the piece.
01:03:51 Doesn't get the touch.
01:03:52 It was out of the piece.
01:03:53 No touch.
01:03:54 Two to go.
01:03:55 He's going to have to make a move here.
01:03:57 He will imagine retreat back.
01:04:02 Here we go.
01:04:04 And Jihan Lee does get that touch in the end.
01:04:07 And that was an exciting battle between those two.
01:04:10 And Jihan Lee extends his lead at the top to six points.
01:04:14 But can Valentin Prads pick up the extra four?
01:04:18 He's been in excellent fencing form, 27 victories.
01:04:34 Valentin Prads, top of the pile in the fencing ranking round.
01:04:38 An electric form, this competition has to be said.
01:04:43 And he's our final athlete and will be battling it out against Eslam Hamad.
01:04:49 Valentin Prads, 27 victories in the fencing ranking round.
01:04:55 He's taking on Jihan Lee.
01:04:57 It's first versus second.
01:04:59 Tight moment here in ten.
01:05:01 Valentin Prads would pick up four points if he were to win this.
01:05:04 It would be a total of four points if Jihan Lee were to get it.
01:05:06 And Valentin Prads gets a touch.
01:05:07 But I think that was off the piece.
01:05:09 No, it wasn't.
01:05:10 And Valentin Prads does get the victory.
01:05:13 Four points to Valentin Prads' score.
01:05:16 And that moves him to within two points of Lee at the top of the standings.
01:05:22 So Valentin Prads has lost a bit of his advantage from the riding.
01:05:28 But should be good to get that
01:05:37 advantage heading into the later on.
01:05:41 So let's take a look at the scores.
01:05:50 And you can see Jihan Lee in first place, two points ahead of Valentin Prads.
01:05:55 Teixei Seto in third.
01:05:57 Eslam Hamad in fourth place.
01:06:01 Marvin Dogg in fifth.
01:06:03 Gergely Regos in sixth.
01:06:04 Joseph Chung in seventh.
01:06:05 Pierre de Jardin in eighth.
01:06:07 Miles Pillage in ninth place.
01:06:09 Those are your top nine athletes.
01:06:12 Looking a bit further down, Zilliqns in tenth place.
01:06:15 Griech in eleventh.
01:06:16 Zhepp in twelfth.
01:06:17 Bresci in thirteenth.
01:06:18 Lu in fourteenth.
01:06:19 Mohamed in fifteenth.
01:06:20 Florent in sixteenth.
01:06:21 Mikhailev in seventeenth.
01:06:23 And Christopher Patt in eighteenth place.
01:06:26 Those are your top eighteen athletes in the world after this competition.
01:06:30 And we say goodbye to the fencing bonus round.
01:06:33 But before we do that, we have the highlights.
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01:07:35 Welcome back to Sofia.
01:07:37 We are going to have an interview with British athlete Charlie Brown in just a moment's time.
01:07:40 But before we do that, let's just take a look how the competition moves from the fencing bonus round stage to the swimming pool, which is, of course, our next discipline.
01:07:51 There is a fencing bonus round stage.
01:07:54 And we move over to the pool for the three heats of swimming freestyle.
01:07:59 Two and a half minutes gets you 250 points.
01:08:02 But none of our athletes will be quite that slow in the pool.
01:08:06 Expect to see some quick times of around 205, 204, maybe even 203 for the quickest of our athletes.
01:08:13 So let's welcome into the commentary box, Charlie Brown.
01:08:15 Charlie, welcome.
01:08:16 You've flown all this way, not been competing in individuals, but we'll see you in mixed relay tomorrow.
01:08:20 Yes, I'm looking forward to the mixed relay tomorrow.
01:08:22 I'm competing with Corenza Bryson.
01:08:25 Yeah, well, you obviously sort of sat by in the sidelines, didn't you, a little bit earlier watching Corenza.
01:08:31 What did you learn from your teammates ahead of your mixed relay?
01:08:36 What did you analyze her performance and think what you can offer her to give you guys the best possible chance of getting a medal tomorrow?
01:08:43 To be honest, most of the time I was just too busy cheering all the poor girls on.
01:08:48 I think I had quite a support group behind us.
01:08:53 But, yeah, at times I was thinking about how if I was in that situation, how I'd cope with the pressure and what I'd do and keep my processes and keep my head together.
01:09:04 But, yeah, no focus was cheering them on.
01:09:06 Second time in two events you've joined us on UIPM TV.
01:09:09 You did actually message me, didn't you, saying if you need me, I'm available.
01:09:11 And we like that attitude from athletes.
01:09:13 What would you say to other athletes who are sort of on the edge thinking, oh, I want to come and have a go at TV?
01:09:17 But I haven't quite thought about it yet.
01:09:19 What would you say to them, people who wanted to?
01:09:21 Yeah, I think it's good for us athletes to get involved with this sort of thing.
01:09:26 It allows us to improve our public speaking, to really, like, I don't know, just improve our sort of some life skills.
01:09:36 Just, yeah, I think it might build our personality and our social media presence.
01:09:41 I don't know, some sort of. Yeah.
01:09:43 I mean, public speaking is a big part of being an athlete, isn't it?
01:09:46 It's something that you'll have to learn to do, isn't it?
01:09:49 And it can be quite nerve wracking talking in front of audiences, talking in front of crowds.
01:09:53 But here you are back again for more.
01:09:56 So obviously we didn't scare you off first time.
01:09:58 No.
01:09:59 There's Joseph Cheung and Myles Pillage on the screen there, your teammates.
01:10:02 What do you make of their competition so far?
01:10:04 Yeah, very good.
01:10:07 They should be in a good position.
01:10:09 Sorry. Both have very quick swims, so they should be moving up the lead, the standings with their swims, especially.
01:10:17 Yeah, both of them just as quick as each other.
01:10:19 And in the semifinal. What about Valentin Pradze and Ji-Hun Lee?
01:10:23 They're in first and second place at the moment.
01:10:26 If you were to pick one of those two for victory, it's a bit early on, isn't it?
01:10:29 Between the two of them, I'd personally say Pradze because of the laser.
01:10:35 I think he's a bit quicker than Korean.
01:10:38 He shot very well yesterday as well.
01:10:40 And I think with the strong fencing, it means he didn't have to push too hard in the semifinal.
01:10:45 Yeah. So he's perhaps reserved a little bit of energy.
01:10:47 Mariam's back in the commentary box. Mariam, you've got some questions for Charlie?
01:10:50 Yeah, I mean, I'm going to try to pick your brain for some insider information on the British team here.
01:10:55 Because the guys have made such a big lead and such great progress over the past couple of years.
01:11:04 And I've noticed a couple of the coaches were using the lactic acid meter and all that stuff.
01:11:09 So tech plays a really big part in your development.
01:11:14 So can you tell us a little bit more about that?
01:11:16 Yeah, I think the team behind us is very experienced on what they know.
01:11:22 And some of the advice they give us has really helped us.
01:11:26 And just really experimenting what helps us with the new transition.
01:11:31 I mean, I think it must be all the teams on the circuit have been trying different things.
01:11:38 What helps them perform their best performance with the new transition?
01:11:42 No one really knows yet. So I think we're just doing what we can to try and find out what's best for us.
01:11:47 Yeah, it's all an experiment, isn't it, with trying to find out new methods.
01:11:52 I mean, you've come into this sport at a good time in the sense that the new format is the only World Cup that you've really trained with.
01:11:59 As a younger athlete, do you feel you have a bit of an advantage over the older athletes perhaps with this new format?
01:12:06 Or does it experience pay dividends, do you think?
01:12:10 I don't think I would say I've had an advantage over the older athletes.
01:12:16 But yeah, no, I do think, as you said, experience is a very big thing.
01:12:21 I mean, they can probably relate to competitions more than me.
01:12:26 This is quite a scene here, by the way, isn't it?
01:12:29 Rebecca massaging Chris, getting him relaxed.
01:12:32 Christopher Parrott's getting a nice little massage.
01:12:35 Ella Piccouvel is there offering him some insight.
01:12:37 The French team seems to have a very, very good team spirit at the moment, doesn't it?
01:12:41 Yeah, the cohesion looks very good.
01:12:43 The three girls were cheering their rides on very loudly once they finished.
01:12:50 They do seem to be backing their athletes very well.
01:12:53 And it's always nice to see because I think that's what we aim to have in our team as well, to drive each other on.
01:12:58 World Championships in Bath in just a couple of months time.
01:13:01 Are you excited about that?
01:13:02 Yeah, definitely.
01:13:03 It's hopefully going to be a really big event.
01:13:05 It's quite an honour to have an event hosted in our country with such big status.
01:13:12 It's going to be important for the Olympic selection.
01:13:16 Hopefully we can get as many friends and family and other supporters to get down and give us the home advantage we want.
01:13:25 But it will obviously be a great venue for athletes around the world, won't it?
01:13:29 As you welcome athletes from all corners of the globe to compete in the home of British Penns Athlon.
01:13:36 We're looking forward to that, of course, being the conclusion of the UIPM 2023 season.
01:13:44 World Cup final, of course, before that in Ankara.
01:13:47 How about yourself? You probably not quite got enough points for World Cup final?
01:13:51 I believe I do.
01:13:52 Oh, you do? OK.
01:13:53 I think I've got, I'd like to say plenty enough points to call our iPhones so far.
01:13:58 OK. Will you be there then?
01:14:00 Well, hopefully I will.
01:14:01 Good man.
01:14:02 Obviously these points for World Cup 4 haven't come through, but we'll have to see. Hopefully I'll be there.
01:14:07 That'd be good to see you there. And obviously, I guess your rivals within your team, Joe Chung, Miles Pillage and Henry Chung as well.
01:14:15 So it's another good team, isn't it?
01:14:18 And obviously this is the transition period between the fencing and the swimming.
01:14:24 What sort of preparations would you do at this point in terms of getting yourself ready for the swim?
01:14:29 I think a lot of the preparation we would have done before the fencing bonus round, we would have almost warmed up everything to do with the swim and the laser run.
01:14:44 But now it's just really like activating the muscles that specifically we need for the swimming.
01:14:51 So I've obviously done pentathlon for a while. I was an athlete for a while, but never got to experience that new format.
01:14:58 So I just wanted to ask you, because obviously you guys are very concerned with nutrition and how you keep your body nourished throughout this competition, because it is tough and it is fast.
01:15:09 So do you maybe like eat something between the disciplines or it's just continuous?
01:15:17 I wouldn't say I eat anything, no, between the disciplines, maybe some power gels, a gel or a bar before the swim, but nothing between the two, swim and the laser run.
01:15:28 Nutrition is obviously a big part of this sport, isn't it? During competition, do you change your diet completely or is it very much?
01:15:36 No, not at all. I try to keep it, if anything, much the same. I think, if anything for me, the nutrition is more important for the fencing ranking round.
01:15:48 It takes a lot of energy, doesn't it? It's a long stint.
01:15:53 OK, well, listen, Charlie, thank you for joining us. We're going to start to introduce the athletes as they make their way out now.
01:15:57 But it's been a pleasure talking to you and we'll catch up with you again soon, right, my friend?
01:16:00 Thank you very much.
01:16:01 Good man, Charlie Brown from British team joining us in the commentary box.
01:16:06 He's going to make his way, I'm sure, towards the pool now to see if he can get there in time for the second swimming heat.
01:16:12 But it's the first swimming heat and first athlete out is Richard Burewski.
01:16:26 Excuse me, a little sneeze. Shuhai Lu is second up. Moutaz Mohamed making his way out in third place.
01:16:36 I'm thinking we're going to have a strong swim here from the Egyptian and the French athlete Hugo Fleurot, who's just up on your screen there.
01:16:45 Both came in with a 2-0-6 in the semifinals.
01:16:50 And Todor Makhalev, who was eliminated from the ride, but did so so elegantly,
01:16:57 checking on the horse before reacting about anything else and gets a big cheer from the local crowd.
01:17:02 Good for him to be a nice moment.
01:17:04 And then Christopher Pats, fresh from that massage, has made his way out onto the course.
01:17:11 Very likeable character, Christopher Pats.
01:17:14 He's a very likeable guy. That's how most of the athletes, let's be honest, nice bunch of people.
01:17:20 So let's get ourselves ready then for swimming heat number one.
01:17:28 Those are your six athletes, Richard Burewski, Shuhai Lu, Moutaz Mohamed, Hugo Fleurot, Todor Makhalev and Christopher Pats.
01:17:40 And here we go. The first swimming heat is underway.
01:17:47 And off we go. Swimming heat one is underway.
01:17:52 And we wait to see who will be the quickest athletes.
01:17:58 Could be a bit of a battle in the middle of the field between Moutaz Mohamed, Hugo Fleurot, Richard Burewski in lane two.
01:18:05 At the front of your screen could pose a threat for the rest of the athletes.
01:18:13 First turn. And as anticipated, it is Hugo and Moutaz battling for the lead.
01:18:24 We were potentially going to get a few showers this afternoon, but the weather has held out, which is good to see.
01:18:29 Please don't jinx it. The athletes need some good weather.
01:18:35 It does put a smile on everyone's face, doesn't it, when the sun comes out?
01:18:38 Yeah, absolutely. So heading towards the halfway stage of this race, Moutaz Mohamed is about to turn.
01:18:47 And there we go. It's a sub one minute. Hugo Fleurot is around a second further back.
01:18:56 Richard Burewski. So the top three are as predicted.
01:19:00 Richard Burewski in lane two.
01:19:08 And there we go. The athletes making their way to the final turn.
01:19:14 It won't make too much of a difference in the grand scheme of the competition, but
01:19:18 athletes individually are looking to finish as strongly as they can.
01:19:24 And there we go. Swimming right back at us. Lovely view underwater there.
01:19:30 You know what? I disagree. I think some of the athletes in the back of the field are looking to still qualify for the World Cup final.
01:19:36 So it could make a big difference in terms of points, couldn't it?
01:19:40 Moutaz Mohamed is making his way towards the finish line, but he's being battled by Hugo Fleurot.
01:19:49 Richard Burewski coming back strong as well. Final few lengths and it is Moutaz Mohamed.
01:19:54 Point seven five ahead of Fleurot. Richard Burewski one point six five.
01:20:00 So there are your top three
01:20:03 from the first swimming heat and it's a time of two five point three seven.
01:20:08 Good time that from Mohamed.
01:20:16 It's picking up on that conversation we had. Definitely the athletes individually will be vying to get as many points as they want.
01:20:23 But the point I was making was in terms of this current competition, I think this current heat will not be making an impact, especially on the medals.
01:20:31 Yeah, you're absolutely right.
01:20:40 And we complete heat number one and look forward to heat two and this could be the fastest.
01:20:48 In fact, it will be the fastest of the two swimming heats. Let's take a look at the scores of the first swimming heat.
01:20:54 Richard Burewski is 14 points ahead of Moutaz Mohamed, who is ahead of Shukhai Lo, Hugo Fleurot, Toto Mikhailov and Christopher Pate rounding things off.
01:21:06 So let's take a look then at the start list for heat two. Joseph Chung in lane two, Pierre de Jodon in lane three,
01:21:12 Myles Pillage in lane four, Chris Silicons in lane five, Matt Greach in lane six and Bala Sheps in lane seven.
01:21:21 A real opportunity now for Joseph Chung and Myles Pillage. They need to try and post as quick a times as they possibly can.
01:21:29 I'm excited for this heat, actually, I don't think we've had a battle in the swimming for a while.
01:21:48 So a bit of a delay here before our second heat, but we're just going to be underway shortly.
01:21:57 And here we go. Our second heat. Joseph Chung from Great Britain will be first out. Olympic gold medalist and current world champion.
01:22:05 It does not get much better than that, does it?
01:22:09 Joseph Chung has won pretty much everything there is to win in this sport.
01:22:13 The only thing he does lack is a European gold medal. 18th in anchor up, but he's also, as mentioned, world champion, Olympic champion.
01:22:21 Fourth World Cup final last year was a silver medalist in Albany last year.
01:22:28 Sofia gold medal in 2020, one more championship silver medal in 2019.
01:22:33 World Cup final gold in Tokyo in 2019. Also won gold in Prague that year.
01:22:40 And Pierre de Jodon made his way out a moment earlier.
01:22:45 As does Mars Pillage, who is probably going to be the quickest swimmer in this heat, but we will wait and see.
01:22:51 Had that full start yesterday, but got away with it because it was a problem with the klaxon.
01:22:55 Christian Zillekens was a gold medalist in Czechoslovakia 2019.
01:23:02 Inside the top 10 in this competition.
01:23:06 Marek Gryc is going to be starting in lane six.
01:23:14 Decent competition so far today. He's moved up from 13th place, 7th in World Cup final last year.
01:23:22 And then finally, Balazs Jeps will complete the lineup for this second swimming heat.
01:23:30 Balazs Jeps 12th in Budapest, 4th in Albany last year, bronze medalist in Cairo last year as well in the first event of the new discipline.
01:23:43 Keep your eyes on lane number two and lane number four.
01:23:47 Joseph Cheng and Miles Pillage and we are underway.
01:23:50 Yeah, heat two is underway and it's going to be a battle there between Pillage and Cheng.
01:23:57 Cheng in lane two at the front of your screen and you can see in the black swimming hat a little bit further back.
01:24:02 It is Miles Pillage. No, sorry, I've got that mistaken.
01:24:06 It's Miles Pillage, obviously in the white hat, the British colors and Joseph Cheng is there on your screen.
01:24:11 So Cheng and Pillage will be battling for first and second here.
01:24:15 It looks like Pillage has got off to a fantastic start. Cheng has looked slower in the pool this last couple of seasons.
01:24:22 He's not pushing as hard in this new format.
01:24:25 Saves energy, perhaps a little bit for the laser run, but he's a quick swimmer and it is good to see athletes competing at the absolute highest possible level in every discipline.
01:24:32 So hoping to see Joseph Cheng push through maybe perhaps a little bit of a slow start, but could finish off with a good
01:24:43 second hundred meters. We've got Valentin Pradze, of course, in the next heat as well as Jihan Li.
01:24:49 Those two are first and second.
01:24:51 Pillage just point eight seven ahead of Joseph Cheng.
01:24:54 Balashev is in third place, but is nearly a full five seconds behind Miles Pillage.
01:24:59 You expect he will be by the end of this race. That is Pillage there, the leader of this race.
01:25:05 Mariam a big fan of his swimming style.
01:25:07 There you can see Joseph Cheng, those two training regularly together in Bath.
01:25:12 And Pillage just making his way through these last few strokes of the penultimate 50 meters.
01:25:18 There's the tumble turn now.
01:25:21 And spins off away and looking to get as close to two minutes as he can.
01:25:26 Will there be a big finish? It's not as frantic as we used to see.
01:25:29 Joseph Cheng and Jamie Cook used to be really at each other's heels.
01:25:33 We used to get good swims from Martha Lannigan, Keith and Charlie Fernandez.
01:25:38 But here we go. Miles Pillage is the quickest in the pool, and I think he's going to finish ahead of Joseph Cheng.
01:25:42 Joseph Cheng is not pushing too hard here. It's not a frantic end to this swim like you will have seen in the old formats.
01:25:49 Joseph Cheng is picking up the pace a little bit into these final few stages.
01:25:52 But there you go. Miles Pillage will come home. And actually it's not a particularly quick time.
01:25:56 It's a 2.05.62 and it's a 2.06 for Cheng.
01:26:01 So have a look at Cheng's face.
01:26:04 Doesn't seem too bothered by that, but that was slow by their standards.
01:26:09 Yeah, but I think the laser on at this point might be a little bit more important.
01:26:15 I mean, we've seen Joseph Cheng finish races that are high.
01:26:21 We've seen him in this very pool post a time of 1.58 in the past before.
01:26:27 I remember in 2019, I think it was he posted a 1.58.
01:26:32 Maybe conserving it for that finish in the laser run.
01:26:35 I mean, we saw it in Tokyo. We saw it on multiple occasions.
01:26:39 Once we get to that final 200 meters, there's no stopping that man.
01:26:44 Those then are the highlights of heat number two.
01:26:55 Miles Pillage came home in first and Joseph Cheng in second.
01:27:00 A second separating both of them.
01:27:03 Let's look at the results then. And Joseph Cheng has moved up temporarily into first place.
01:27:08 814 his score. Pillage is in second. Winning those two will start in seventh and eighth place at the very least.
01:27:16 Possibly could move up even further up.
01:27:18 Pierre de Jardin in third place. Richard Breski in fourth. Balashep in fifth place.
01:27:23 But up next, it is the final swimming heats.
01:27:27 And we'll go through those athletes one by one in just a moment's time.
01:27:37 So those are your athletes for swimming heats three.
01:27:41 And this is where we're going to see how the standings will lie after the starts of the laser run.
01:27:47 Ji-Hung Lee, Valentin Pradze, Taishe Saito, Eslam Hamad, Marvin Dogg and Gergly Rezus are the six athletes in this final swimming heat.
01:27:56 Strike yourselves in, folks. Things are about to get interesting.
01:27:59 Will Valentin Pradze be able to keep up with Ji-Hung Lee, who on paper is around about three seconds, four seconds faster than Pradze?
01:28:10 So here he is, Ji-Hung Lee, the out-and-out leader at this stage of the competition.
01:28:15 He is in first place. That perfect ride made a big difference.
01:28:20 It was just a 2.86 for Valentin Pradze on the riding course.
01:28:25 But Pradze, eighth now, fifth in cars, looking for his first medal since gold at the World Cup final.
01:28:30 He's also a World Championship silver medalist and multiple World Cup medalist.
01:28:34 Taishe Saito looking for his first ever World Cup medal.
01:28:39 He will be beginning in lane four.
01:28:42 Alongside him in lane five is Eslam Hamad, also looking for a first ever World Cup gold medal.
01:28:50 You've seen it in the women's earlier this morning, so no ruling that out.
01:28:55 Anything can change. This man is looking for his first ever World Cup gold medal.
01:28:59 He's won silvers before, notably at World Cup final in Sokio 2019 and in Prague on that same year,
01:29:05 which was a real breakthrough year for Marvindog and he's looking potentially back to his best here.
01:29:09 Gurgly Legos is the final athlete to make his way on the course.
01:29:20 And those are the six athletes in this third swimming heat.
01:29:36 So here we go. The athletes lined up and raring to go.
01:29:40 Our third and final swimming heats. Off we go.
01:29:50 This isn't going to be our fastest heat, but this is our last heat.
01:29:54 Eyes on Valentin Pradze and Ji-Hoon Lee leading the competition this far.
01:30:00 It could swim from either of them, could put them in position number one going into the laser run.
01:30:07 That could be the difference between a gold and a silver.
01:30:14 Yeah, it could make the difference, couldn't it?
01:30:17 Keep your eyes on lanes two and three. That is where Lee and Pradze are.
01:30:24 And you can see Pradze is looking quite pacey at this early stage of the race, which is interesting to see.
01:30:35 Marvindog is falling back a bit, expecting not the strongest of swimmers, but it is Ji-Hoon Lee.
01:30:44 Ji-Hoon Lee who leads, yep, Gurgly Legos ahead of him.
01:30:47 So Ji-Hoon Lee will be extending his lead at the top of the pack as things stand.
01:30:52 Teichu Seto is in third place.
01:30:56 Gurgly Legos is gurgling away in the pool.
01:31:02 And trying to keep up with first and second place.
01:31:11 And it is currently our out and out leader Ji-Hoon Lee who is out in first place.
01:31:21 And really looks to be potentially going to set a good time here.
01:31:25 This is looking very good for Ji-Hoon Lee in the swimming pool here.
01:31:30 Oh, 25 meters. Yeah, this could be the fastest time of the day.
01:31:33 You know, he's really putting everything into this.
01:31:35 Hopefully not going too hard, but you can see frantically trying to make up as much time as he possibly can.
01:31:41 And Ji-Hoon Lee into the final few meters of this race.
01:31:45 Could be around the time of 2.05, you know, this is a huge swim.
01:31:48 I think Mike's pick up a second. Sorry of that.
01:31:50 It's a 2.07.6 for Ji-Hoon Lee.
01:31:53 Gurgly Legos comes home in second place.
01:31:55 Eslam Hamad comes home in third.
01:31:57 So it's a 2.07
01:32:00 for Ji-Hoon Lee. And he absolutely gave everything there.
01:32:06 Yeah, but you can, you can overdo it, can't you?
01:32:09 Yeah, you can sometimes overdo it. It may look like you're going faster than you actually are.
01:32:13 I mean, some athletes such as Miles Post, Joseph Chung,
01:32:16 it may look like they're a bit more calm underwater, but their strokes are really, really powerful,
01:32:21 carrying a lot of water on there.
01:32:23 Just like seeing a duck float on the water, it moves its legs really, really fast underwater,
01:32:28 but then looks graceful and peaceful up at the top.
01:32:32 Yeah, nice metaphor that.
01:32:35 Fan of that. So the swimming is done and we're just seeing the replays now,
01:32:40 but it's really the scores we want to see because it'll be interesting to see what time
01:32:44 Valentin Pras posted. You can see Ji-Hoon Lee was
01:32:49 in very, very good form in the pool and really gave it everything in that swimming heat.
01:32:54 Fastest swimmer in heat three.
01:33:00 A bit more forceful in the pool, but he made it.
01:33:04 In first place at this. Let's have a look at the scores then.
01:33:08 So Ji-Hoon Lee has extended his lead at the top.
01:33:12 It's now 14 seconds ahead and Valentin Pras has dropped down to third place.
01:33:17 Taisho Sato has moved up into second and
01:33:21 Eslam Hamed, Marvin Dog in fourth and fifth place, Chung and Pillage in sixth and seventh,
01:33:26 Regos in eighth and Pierre de Jardin in ninth place.
01:33:29 It was basically nothing separating second from, I'd say all the way down to eighth.
01:33:34 Yeah, there's still a lot that could change here. You've got Boretsky and Zhepp.
01:33:38 Zillikon is looking to try and get himself in the middle of another Hungarian sandwich.
01:33:42 One place behind. The infamous Hungarian sandwich.
01:33:45 Moutaz Mohamed in 14th, Shu-Hai Liu in 15th, Olga Flor in 16th, Toto Makhalev in 17th and Christopher Pat in 18th place.
01:33:57 So that is where things stand after the swimming discipline.
01:34:02 We are building up to the start of the Laser Run 3. Swimming heat done and dusted.
01:34:07 The fencing bonus round has been completed. The athletes are already making their way out to the course to try and get themselves warmed up.
01:34:15 We are about to move over to the Laser Run.
01:34:19 But we are just reflecting a little bit more on the swimming.
01:34:24 And we can take a look back at the swimming highlights then before moving over to coverage of the Laser Run.
01:34:30 [Music]
01:34:33 [Music]
01:34:36 [Music]
01:34:40 [Music]
01:34:43 [Music]
01:35:03 [Music]
01:35:06 [Music]
01:35:24 [Music]
01:35:27 So that concludes the swimming discipline live here from Sofia.
01:35:45 And you know what? It's now time for the exciting and ever-dramatic conclusion of Modern Pentathlon.
01:35:52 We have done the fencing, we've done the riding, we have done everything except the exciting Laser Run.
01:35:59 And let's take a look then at how this competition moves from the swimming arena to the Laser Run arena,
01:36:05 which is where the men's individual final and indeed Superstatic will be concluded.
01:36:09 We are over now to the Laser Shooting Range.
01:36:12 And of course, these are the steps that the athletes need to take for shooting series at 10 meters distance.
01:36:19 And then of course, it is a run around the course. It's fast, it's frantic.
01:36:23 It's Modern Pentathlon 2023. The Laser Run is about to get us underway with our final discipline here in Sofia.
01:36:33 So the men's final is obviously our second of two finals to bring you coverage of live here on UIPM TV.
01:36:41 And Mariam has disappeared to go and try and find some athletes for us to speak to.
01:36:46 And she's come back with, I think, a couple of athletes actually. She's pretty good at this, Mariam.
01:36:51 So we will welcome a couple of athletes into the commentary box.
01:36:56 It's Charlie Follett and it's Emma Whittaker who have made their way through.
01:37:00 Can I give you the microphone? Hello to both of you. How are you doing?
01:37:03 Yeah, all good, thank you. Good to see you both.
01:37:05 It's better now the sun's out. Yeah, it makes a big difference, doesn't it?
01:37:08 Talk to us firstly about your competition, because obviously you competed earlier in the individual final.
01:37:16 Good result for both of you. Talk to us about how the competition's been.
01:37:19 Yeah, it's been a good competition for both of us. We both kind of probably didn't have the fence that we would have kind of hoped for.
01:37:27 But yeah, it's just been good fun. The competition's gone quite smoothly today. Yeah, just really enjoyable.
01:37:35 We both benefited from the bonus round as well, didn't we? I was going to say.
01:37:39 So the day got better and then, yeah, it's been a good week.
01:37:43 You had a great offensive bonus round in both the semi-final and indeed the final, didn't you?
01:37:46 You picked up 10 extra points, which really actually helped you qualify for the final, didn't it?
01:37:49 Yeah, it did. A new format, bonus round, can make a big difference, can't it?
01:37:52 Yeah, I feel like now it's worth two points. We really respect it a bit more.
01:37:58 And it's nice getting kitted up and actually making it worthwhile.
01:38:03 It's a lot of effort to get changed and to get some extra points is always a bonus.
01:38:08 And Charlie, a top 10 finish for you. I feel like that first ever pentathlon medal for you in the World Cup is getting closer.
01:38:15 Obviously, European champion, so you won a massive title last year. But yeah, you're getting closer and closer.
01:38:20 Do you obviously see what happened with Correnzo and do you take inspiration from that?
01:38:24 Yeah, definitely, definitely. I mean, Kay today absolutely smashed it. Absolutely amazing.
01:38:29 I feel like we're all very, very proud of her. But yeah, I know it's definitely, it definitely gives you a little push forwards.
01:38:36 And yeah, moving off from like Europeans and stuff last year, I'm really excited for the rest of the season this year.
01:38:41 So yeah, all good.
01:38:43 And taking a look at the men's final now, because obviously we are building up to coverage of the Laser Run.
01:38:51 Who's your sort of early thoughts? I know you're going to favour your own athletes.
01:38:55 Emma, obviously you're going to point towards Miles. I think Emma would get in a lot of trouble if she didn't favour Miles.
01:39:00 Let's put Miles and Joe to one side and take a look at the rest of the field.
01:39:05 Who are you sort of looking at here as a potential? You're going quite far down the list there, Emma.
01:39:09 Yeah, Christian was looking really strong the other day. I don't think you can ignore him.
01:39:14 And he had a great ride. But are they going to catch those guys at the top?
01:39:19 52 seconds off the lead. That would be quite a Laser Run, wouldn't it?
01:39:22 But to get in the top six, I don't know.
01:39:27 Pradze is probably one of the, after his amazing, I mean 27 victories in the fence is absolutely crazy.
01:39:33 It was unbelievable.
01:39:34 That just sets you off on a very good start at the beginning.
01:39:37 Marvin Dogg as well has looked pretty solid this competition, hasn't he? He's in fifth place at the moment.
01:39:42 Had that good battle with Joe in 2019.
01:39:47 Yeah, definitely. And I mean, he's only 25 seconds off. So he's really not that far off the lead.
01:39:53 I think it's going to be exciting. I mean, it's relatively close at the top.
01:39:57 So, you know, with the shooting and stuff now, anything can happen. It can change so much.
01:40:03 How scary is it in that shooting range, by the way?
01:40:05 Because, you know, you get to the point that Kay was in where on the final lap and gold was literally in her hands.
01:40:12 How nerve wracking can that situation be?
01:40:14 Oh, it can be really nerve wracking just trying to keep your cool and keep focused and things.
01:40:19 And all the other athletes are coming in around you. But yeah, today, Kay, I mean, she showed us how to do it.
01:40:26 I mean, there is a lot of pressure. Mariam, you got a question?
01:40:28 Yeah, I was just going to say, I mean, Kay Chong-Ming Sheng were probably the underdogs for that race.
01:40:33 We weren't expecting that at all. Like they are pretty good athletes all in all.
01:40:37 But do you see somebody further down who might make it into that?
01:40:41 Nice question. Anyone that maybe we could see with a first World Cup gold medal?
01:40:44 Obviously, we're not expecting you guys to know everyone that's won medals before.
01:40:48 You know, your athletes focusing on your own careers.
01:40:50 But anyone that you think maybe, like Islam Hamid, do you think he could possibly win his first ever gold medal?
01:40:56 Possibly, yeah.
01:40:57 Seicho Saito. I mean, there's some...
01:40:58 There's a few at the top that, yeah, could definitely come through.
01:41:02 We've not spoken enough about Ji-Hun Lee, by the way, who's been unbelievable in this competition.
01:41:06 Yeah, I don't... I'm not sure with the boys. I would like Saito to do well. I love his bonus round.
01:41:15 I know that.
01:41:16 He's chanting before he goes on.
01:41:18 Secretly, I actually want him to keep winning because I love that little, like, that tribal chant that he does at the beginning.
01:41:24 All right, we'll let you talk about the British athletes. OK, we've got two British athletes in the box with us.
01:41:28 It's only fair.
01:41:29 It's only fair. What do you think of Joe and Miles' chances then?
01:41:32 Obviously, Joe's... We all know what Joe's achieved in this sport. Miles is... He looked great this year, Miles, to be fair.
01:41:38 Could we see those two on the podium? I know, I know.
01:41:42 Because that was the most casual response. Uh-huh.
01:41:44 Yeah, it's not that. I just don't want to, like...
01:41:46 Don't want to jinx it.
01:41:47 Yeah, don't want to jinx it. His mother would kill me. But a top six would be nice, wouldn't it?
01:41:51 Going to hold that thought there because we've got some graphics.
01:41:54 And this is a good insight for you two, actually, into the analytics that we've got in this sport at the moment.
01:41:59 Taisho Seto is on your screen now. We're looking literally right down the barrel of the gun.
01:42:03 And we're going to take a look at some of his achievements in the sport so far.
01:42:07 He's got one silver medal in World Cup history. Born back in 1993, made his World Cup debut in 2017.
01:42:15 15 World Cup starts. He's got a modern pentathlon senior world ranking of 32.
01:42:22 But let's delve even deeper into Taisho Seto's career.
01:42:26 And we'll take a look as he leaves the shooting range and looking to warm himself up.
01:42:30 This is his average, OK? So in terms of how he compares to the rest of the field, he's 3% above average in fencing.
01:42:37 He's 4% above average in laser and is above average in everything, actually.
01:42:41 1% above riding and 1% above swimming.
01:42:44 We've got all these statistics on you two as well, by the way.
01:42:47 So we do really try to delve into how athletes are performing.
01:42:51 And then we're looking, focusing here, obviously, on Taisho Seto and how he starts races compared to how he finishes.
01:42:57 And you can see usually, well, it's a bit of a mixed bag. He's dropping back quite a bit, isn't he?
01:43:02 So Taisho Seto is starting in second place, but potentially, Marion, could drop back in this competition.
01:43:08 So can he put an end to that run or can he take a silver medal here?
01:43:11 I mean, it's exciting. It just adds to the tension of this race already.
01:43:14 So we'll just have to wait and see. I mean, we've seen surprises before.
01:43:18 I think we can see them again today. OK, I'm going to push everybody for predictions here.
01:43:23 I'm going to get you to predict gold, silver and bronze. We'll start with you, Emma.
01:43:26 Careful, Emma. Lee. You're going to go for Lee for gold.
01:43:34 Pradze for silver. Chungi. And Joseph Chung for bronze. And then Miles.
01:43:46 I think they're fairly accurate. It's difficult for us because we probably watch, well, we watch a lot less of the boys than we do the girls.
01:43:52 So it's difficult to really know. But lots of noises coming from behind.
01:43:58 That was a real grunt, wasn't it? Caught us all off guard there.
01:44:01 Are you going to stick with the same predictions as Emma? You know what, I'm going to stick with the same.
01:44:05 Maybe we'll just check Marvin in there. You're going to check Marvin in?
01:44:11 Yeah. Do we give Marvin bronze over Joe Chu? No, I feel like we've got to keep Joe in the mix.
01:44:16 Well, maybe. Oh, it's a bit tricky this. I also feel like we want to try and get the British people out of it just not to jinx it.
01:44:25 Yeah, that's a good point. I love how much thought you're putting into this, by the way. We want to get this very accurate.
01:44:32 OK, final answers then. Come on. We're pushing you. I don't even know what you said. You've said pretty much everyone's name.
01:44:38 We've just thrown everyone in there. So maybe one of them we might get right.
01:44:43 OK, you may be swapping Marvin for Joe, but you want to keep Joe in that top three.
01:44:47 Mariam, I feel like you're better poised to make these predictions, having done it all season.
01:44:53 Why is everyone so nervous right now? Because I'm following two very strong athletes and their predictions seem to be right off.
01:45:00 I've got my predictions lined up straight away. Do you want me to go ahead?
01:45:04 Pras with gold, Lee with silver and I'm going to go with Joe Chu for bronze.
01:45:10 There you go. That's probably not far off what your predictions were, were they?
01:45:13 Mariam? I'll go Pras first, Jihoon Lee second, maybe Joseph or Marvin in third.
01:45:21 Joseph or Marvin in third. Interesting.
01:45:23 You know what, if the shoot goes well, I think Marvin might be third.
01:45:28 If he struggles a bit in the shoot, I think Joseph is going to bring it home.
01:45:31 I mean, he has that finish he's famous for. He's done it in Tokyo. He's done it on multiple occasions.
01:45:36 So it's going to be exciting. Nice answer. So we're building up to the start of the ladies' run.
01:45:41 We'll say goodbye to both Charlie and Emma. You guys have been brilliant.
01:45:44 Thank you so much for coming. And any athlete that's tuning in and saying,
01:45:47 I want to come to the commentary box, take inspiration from Emma and Charlie.
01:45:50 You've been absolutely fantastic. Go enjoy the race, guys. And we'll catch up with you again soon.
01:45:54 Later in this. This is your start list then as we're building up to coverage of the starts of the ladies' run.
01:46:00 Jihoon Lee leads the way with 13 seconds. Taisho Saito will be in second place.
01:46:07 Valentin Pras will be in third place. Eslam Had in fourth.
01:46:12 Marvin Dog in fifth. Joseph Chung in sixth. Myles Pulledge in seventh.
01:46:15 Gurgli Regos in eighth. Pierre Desjardins in ninth place.
01:46:19 Those are your top nine. Can anybody on the next screen maybe find their way into that top rankings?
01:46:25 Richard Breski in tenth. Balashep in eleventh. Christian Zillikens in twelfth.
01:46:28 Marat Gric in thirteenth. Moultas Mohamed in fourteenth. Shuai Liu in fifteenth place.
01:46:33 Ugo Floro in sixteenth. Tolima Halev in seventeenth. And Christopher Pat in eighteenth place.
01:46:39 Those are your top 18 athletes. We are just two minutes away from the start of the ladies' run.
01:46:46 Thoughts heading into this one, Mariam?
01:46:48 You know what? No thoughts this far. I mean, it's been unpredictable this morning.
01:46:54 It has been unpredictable in mountain pentathlon in general, but I'm excited to see what this race brings.
01:46:59 We're literally on our toes at the minute. We're standing up. Can't sit down for this race.
01:47:05 I mean, who can at this point? Seeing the Korean athletes just on the line there, getting ready for his race.
01:47:12 Currently in first position and looking to maintain that throughout the race.
01:47:18 Yeah, Mariam has hit the nail on the head there. We can't sit down.
01:47:22 We're too anxious for the start of this race.
01:47:26 Will Jihan Li win his first World Cup gold medal?
01:47:37 It said in the statistics that he'd won one silver before, but we missed that in our race notes.
01:47:42 Didn't see that one. I'm just not entirely sure which event it was that Jihan won silver.
01:47:47 Was it Jihan or Sato?
01:47:49 Sato we did the statistics for, wasn't it? Sato would potentially be picking up his second medal.
01:47:57 Still not sure where Sato won his medal. Anyway, let's focus on the race and the medals that will be won today.
01:48:03 We are within that final minutes before the start of this race.
01:48:10 30 seconds then until the start of the conclusion of Super Saturday with the men's final.
01:48:17 It is five disciplines condensed over the space of a 90 minute duration.
01:48:26 Tense music right before that start. Gets your adrenaline going and it's a good thing they don't have to shoot that first lap.
01:48:33 Five disciplines in 90 minutes, but it all comes down to this.
01:48:37 The laser run underway here in Sofia with Jihan Li leading us off the mark,
01:48:43 taking a tight line around the first corner. And this is of course the formation lap.
01:48:48 No shooting on the first lap. And Jihan Li looks like he has got his fast shoes on as he shoots off.
01:48:56 Taisho Sato closely followed by Valentin Pras and Eslam Hamad is on the course.
01:49:02 So how quick would you want to be wanting to go on this first lap, Marion?
01:49:05 Would you want to be trying to catch up or do you want to just be pacing yourself?
01:49:08 I wouldn't go 100 percent, maybe 80 percent of your energy. You still have a lot to go.
01:49:13 This is only your first lap. We have to save that energy for the shoot as well.
01:49:18 We know how quick Joe Chung can be at the end of races. He's got that lightning fast finish.
01:49:24 Are we potentially going to see hammer time from Joseph Chung for the first time this season?
01:49:28 I think we are. I think we're going to see a bit of that.
01:49:32 Mars Pilic out on the course behind his teammate Gurgli Regos is in eighth place.
01:49:38 Pierre Desjardins in ninth place. Richard Boretsky in tenth.
01:49:42 But you can see Valentin Pras is already moving through the field and is about to potentially overtake Taisho Sato.
01:49:48 Who we saw from the statistics is often dropping a little bit further back in the laser run.
01:49:53 So Pras is over the back of Sato in second place. And it's now just 10 seconds that gap.
01:50:00 So Pras has already taken 10 seconds out of the lead.
01:50:03 And I would say looks in a good position potentially to push for a first place finish.
01:50:07 But don't forget, it's all about the shooting. That is where this competition could be won or lost.
01:50:15 So here we go. I feel like Pras could be about to overtake, but he's just settled in behind Sato.
01:50:22 Maybe starting to think already about his first laser shoots.
01:50:26 Maybe a battle at this point isn't the best idea. You don't want to burn off that energy at the beginning.
01:50:31 We still have a lot to go.
01:50:32 Yeah, these athletes do seem to all be pacing themselves, which is no real surprise in the early stages of this race.
01:50:39 So Jihan Li is leading and heading to the first shoot of this race.
01:50:47 Race leader is in the range. Right hand on the pistol.
01:50:52 And here we go. Makes his first shot. It misses his second.
01:50:57 It's two out of the five there as the other athletes arrive at the range and the pressure now starts to mount for our race leader.
01:51:03 He's on the three out of the five. Sato shooting well here.
01:51:06 And it's four out of the five for our race leader Jihan Li, who's struggling a little bit here.
01:51:12 It's given perhaps Valentin Pras a chance to catch up. So Li is away and Pras is away.
01:51:18 In fact, no, it was Sato that got out in front of Li. So we've had a change for the lead here.
01:51:23 Valentin Pras has moved up into second place. Sato leads the race. Pras in second. It was good shooting.
01:51:28 Li a little bit slower. Eslanhamed in fourth place. Dogs away, as is Chung.
01:51:34 So as you were in terms of the top six, other than the fact that Li has dropped down now to third place.
01:51:42 Pilic is out as is Jeppe, as is Rigos. So only 26 seconds separates the top nine.
01:51:52 Strap yourselves in. This is going to be a battle to the end.
01:51:56 It's anyone's guess as to who wins this race. We've had one shoot and it's this point of the race.
01:52:01 You just feel I don't want this to end. This is going to be exhilarating and exciting.
01:52:05 And it looks like Valentin Pras is closing in a little bit on Sato.
01:52:08 But Sato is looking quick out there. Could we be about to see a gold for Sato?
01:52:12 Yeah, I mean, it's difficult to tell whether he's putting it in his all or he's pacing himself.
01:52:18 It all depends on how he distributes his energy throughout this race.
01:52:23 It looks like Pras is coming on the tail of him, though.
01:52:26 One significant statistic here is Joseph Chung starts the race 35 seconds off the lead
01:52:31 and has now moved up to within 19 seconds of Sato.
01:52:35 So we have some really intriguing battles that are coming,
01:52:40 unfolding in front of our very eyes here at the fourth and final World Cup of the 2023 season,
01:52:47 ahead of the World Cup final.
01:52:50 Looks like Ji-Hun Lee is dropping a bit here, but Sato and Pras are on each other's tails.
01:52:59 Yeah, Pras has been quite happy to follow Sato around the course.
01:53:05 You can see Ji-Hun Lee is loosening his shooting arm as is Sato, just stretching it out.
01:53:10 And there we go. It is now time for our second shoot.
01:53:14 Sato is at the range as is Pras, as is Lee.
01:53:19 This is good shooting from Sato once again. Pras is shooting pretty well as well.
01:53:23 Sato's had a great shoot. Sato is away as is Pras.
01:53:27 So that battle was pretty much as it was, but Ji-Hun Lee is a little bit slow here.
01:53:33 Could this bring maybe another athlete into third place? Marvin Dogg moves up into third place.
01:53:38 Islam Hamad is there or thereabouts as well. It's a slow shoot this from Joseph Chung.
01:53:42 So Chung, who made up quite a bit of time, is now, I say it's slow, it's not the speed we're used to with Joseph Chung.
01:53:49 It's a 13-second shoot. Regas has moved up now into sixth place.
01:53:54 So it's all change, but in a way all similar as well.
01:53:58 It is Ji-Hun Lee who missed out significantly there.
01:54:02 But are we going to see Marvin Dogg on the podium as predicted by Charlie Vollitz?
01:54:05 Looks like it. I mean, he's having a good shoot. Helps his case with the running as well.
01:54:10 But it is a very tight race. One small slip up and you can say goodbye to that medal.
01:54:17 Yeah, it really is one of those races, isn't it?
01:54:19 But this battle for first and second is really, really intriguing.
01:54:23 Well, Valentin Pradze has got that big finish as well. He's saving himself.
01:54:26 Saito has Valentin Pradze all in his wing mirrors.
01:54:30 And this could be a really, really dramatic finish.
01:54:34 Pradze is such a big figure as well. Quite an intimidating figure to be running behind you.
01:54:40 The top six, in fact, the top seven still only separated by 22 seconds.
01:54:45 One lightning fast shoot could make a big, big difference here.
01:54:48 Balashev in eighth place, Pieterjaard in ninth place, Pilij in tenth place, Zilikins in eleventh place.
01:54:54 Are we about to see a change for the race lead?
01:54:57 Pradze doesn't seem to be pushing it too much at this point, does he?
01:54:59 He's certainly pacing himself.
01:55:00 Yeah, I was just going to say, he's looking strong. He doesn't look that tired.
01:55:03 I think it is intentional. He's just waiting for that right moment to overtake Saito.
01:55:08 Maybe this early on in the race isn't such a good idea.
01:55:11 We still have two shoots to go, which is really quite exciting.
01:55:17 Pradze and Saito are absolutely neck and neck. Is it about to change?
01:55:21 They're both at the shooting range. Saito on the left, Pradze on the right.
01:55:25 Saito's made his first shot before Pradze has even lifted his gun up.
01:55:28 It's one for one for both those athletes. It's two for Saito.
01:55:32 It's three each. They are shooting absolutely matching each other now.
01:55:35 Pradze is stuck on three. Saito's up to four. It's now four for four.
01:55:40 Who gets away first? Saito and Pradze are absolutely neck and neck.
01:55:45 Marvin Dogg has brought himself beautifully back into the picture here with a lightning far shoot.
01:55:50 Marvin Dogg is now in third place. Eslan Hammond is having the race of his life in fourth place.
01:55:56 Looking now to see who is going to be shooting a little bit well.
01:55:59 It is Jihan Li who is consolidating at fifth place.
01:56:02 He's got the two Hungarians, Gergely Regos and Balashev.
01:56:06 Zsardan has brought himself back into the picture.
01:56:09 Chung has slipped back even further. He's now down in ninth place.
01:56:13 Mars Bilic is in tenth. So it's going to take a lot you would feel for those athletes a bit further back to push up now.
01:56:21 Christian Zillikens in eleventh place.
01:56:23 Saito still leads but I'd love to see that course.
01:56:26 In fact, no, Valentin Pradze has moved into the race lead.
01:56:30 He has taken a step further forward now and is starting to apply even more pace.
01:56:35 Valentin Pradze we know is saving a bit of energy for the later stages of this race and has moved up into first place, Mariam.
01:56:41 Yeah, I think he knew he could overtake Saito.
01:56:44 He was just waiting for that perfect moment.
01:56:46 I think it is now because Marvin "Fally" Dogg is making some moves here.
01:56:50 He's currently in third place, but not too far off those first two athletes.
01:56:53 So it's going to be a race to the finish.
01:56:56 Yeah, we've got the two Hungarians chasing down as well.
01:56:59 Balashev has always got a good laser run on him.
01:57:02 Gergely Regos, Joseph Chung is starting to make moves as well.
01:57:05 Don't forget Joseph Chung has got that big sprint finish.
01:57:08 So we could see things changing as the race continues.
01:57:11 Joseph Chung has stayed about 22 seconds behind.
01:57:14 Ji-Hung Lee has dropped down now to ninth place.
01:57:16 Christian Zillekens in tenth. Pillage is in eleventh place.
01:57:19 We're going to need to see some really, really good shoots by all these athletes if they want to hold on to these positions.
01:57:24 Otherwise, there could be competitors snapping at their heels.
01:57:28 It is the final shoots.
01:57:30 This is where gold and silver could be won or lost.
01:57:33 Valentin Pradze, a prize, arrives at the range first.
01:57:36 Saito is just to his left.
01:57:38 Here we go. It's the final shoots.
01:57:40 They both make their first shot as well.
01:57:43 It's one out of those two out of five for both of them.
01:57:46 Saito makes it three.
01:57:48 Pradze is struggling a little bit here, but so is Saito.
01:57:51 Is Marvin Dogg going to get pulled into this battle?
01:57:53 Marvin Dogg now leads on the shooting range.
01:57:55 It's four out of five for all of them.
01:57:57 Saito's away. Dogg's away. Pradze is away.
01:57:59 It's going to be a big finish for first, second and third.
01:58:02 But Pradze has work to do.
01:58:04 This is all about that battle for first, second and third now.
01:58:07 Saito leads Marvin Dogg, but Marvin Dogg has moved up through the field
01:58:11 and has Pradze all over the back of him.
01:58:13 First, second and third separated by just two seconds.
01:58:17 Valentin Pradze has saved a bit of energy and is now starting to dig deep.
01:58:21 And he goes round the outside of Marvin Dogg to reclaim second place.
01:58:24 Valentin Pradze, starting third, has moved up to second
01:58:27 and is now chasing down Taisho Saito, who is looking quick out front.
01:58:31 It's a battle between these two. And Valentin Pradze moves around the outside.
01:58:35 Marvin Dogg is by no means out of this, but Valentin Pradze moves into the race lead.
01:58:39 He has done it. Valentin Pradze moves ahead of Taisho Saito.
01:58:43 He's saved a bit of energy for the latter stages of this race.
01:58:46 And this has been an absolute classic here in Sofia.
01:58:50 Valentin Pradze managing his pace beautifully, now leads the race
01:58:55 and is pulling away from Taisho Saito.
01:58:57 Marvin Dogg is dropping a little bit further back.
01:58:59 Ezra Hammond still in fourth place.
01:59:01 Joseph Chung has moved up into fifth place.
01:59:03 But Valentin Pradze still has Taisho Saito all over the back of him.
01:59:07 He's so strong. The French athlete is powering through.
01:59:11 And is it going to be another gold medal to add to his collection?
01:59:14 His first gold since the World Cup final in 2021.
01:59:19 Valentin Pradze is looking good for it at the moment.
01:59:22 He's making his way through the last few stages of this race.
01:59:25 He's got a good lead.
01:59:26 And Valentin Pradze in front of the crowd here in Sofia has done it.
01:59:32 He makes his way to the finish line.
01:59:34 It's gold for Pradze.
01:59:36 It's silver for Saito who celebrates like it was a win.
01:59:39 Big, big performance and a huge scream from Saito.
01:59:42 Brilliant performance that from Marvin Dogg.
01:59:45 And in the end, Joseph Chung with a strong finish, finishing in fourth place.
01:59:49 Jeff in fifth, Desjardins in sixth, and Ezra Hammond in seventh.
01:59:53 I'm exhausted, Marion.
01:59:55 I am exhausted for you.
01:59:56 I mean, I couldn't get a word in there.
01:59:58 I mean, James is enthusiastic.
02:00:00 He's excited for this race.
02:00:02 And we have the rest of our athletes coming through that line now.
02:00:06 Christian Zilken is in eighth.
02:00:10 And I believe that is Greg Lee, Régosh of Hungary.
02:00:15 Lee just coming off the line there.
02:00:18 Started in first, dropped back.
02:00:22 I can't really tell where it went wrong here,
02:00:25 but the rest of the athletes do make their way across that line.
02:00:28 Mottaz Mohamed, Merk Grytsch in 13th, and the Hungarian in 14th,
02:00:35 Miles Pudge coming home in 15th.
02:00:40 And what a race that has been.
02:00:42 I think it must have been one of the closest races we have had this season
02:00:46 for first, second, and third.
02:00:49 We have our final three athletes making it to the start/finish straight.
02:00:53 Christopher Patt just across the line on your screen there.
02:00:58 Hugo Fleureau for France coming across the line.
02:01:02 And our final athlete representing the host country of Bulgaria,
02:01:06 Todor Mihaljev.
02:01:09 And that concludes our men's final here in Sofia, Bulgaria,
02:01:13 for the fourth World Cup of this season,
02:01:16 the last of four World Cups,
02:01:19 and building up to the World Cup final,
02:01:22 which is going to be happening in two weeks' time in Ankara, Turkey.
02:01:25 And there is your race winner, Valentin Prad.
02:01:28 Just congratulating him there was Pierre Desjardins.
02:01:32 Also with a fantastic job.
02:01:34 He will be joining him on the podium in sixth position.
02:01:37 I'm sure Prad is very proud of that performance he just put up,
02:01:42 put in a good fight.
02:01:44 He knew when to push, knew when to hold back,
02:01:47 and it was hammer time in that last stop for Prad.
02:01:51 And here we can see some replays of the race.
02:01:55 Jihoon Lee who started in first, Taishoo Setu started in second,
02:01:58 came home in second.
02:02:00 Prad started in third,
02:02:03 but eventually made his way up into the lead of that race.
02:02:07 But it was a bit of a struggle for the Korean athletes
02:02:10 during the shooting and running.
02:02:13 Maybe we can get some insight to that later.
02:02:15 But Setu with very solid shoots throughout this race,
02:02:19 earned him that silver medal.
02:02:22 Here you can see Prad and Setu in the shooting range.
02:02:27 Prad just held off overtaking Setu until the end of that race,
02:02:31 because he knew he had that finish in him.
02:02:34 Jihoon Lee was maintaining third at that point,
02:02:39 but Marvin Fahley-Dogg joined that race
02:02:42 soon after to take home bronze.
02:02:47 What a great season for, or great comeback,
02:02:51 shall I say, for Marvin Fahley-Dogg.
02:02:53 I mean, he hasn't won a medal in the World Cup Series
02:02:56 since 2019 at the World Cup Final.
02:03:00 But that then is shots of Prad overtaking Setu in that last lap.
02:03:05 He had that bit of energy in him,
02:03:07 conserved for that last lap,
02:03:09 because he knew he was going to need it.
02:03:11 Marvin Fahley-Dogg absolutely did put the pressure
02:03:14 on both these athletes.
02:03:16 But in the end, it was Valentin Prad who came in gold,
02:03:21 Taishu Seto of Japan who came in silver.
02:03:25 And rounding up our top three athletes
02:03:28 is Marvin Fahley-Dogg of Germany,
02:03:31 who came in bronze.
02:03:35 There you can see Prad dead from that race.
02:03:39 But amazing performance by him, hugging his teammate,
02:03:42 Pierre Desjardins, who also put up a fantastic performance.
02:03:47 Pierre Desjardins started down in ninth
02:03:49 and came up all the way to sixth position.
02:03:54 Just really good competition across the board
02:03:57 from all our athletes.
02:03:58 And there up on your screen are the results.
02:04:02 So Valentin Prad in first, Taishu Seto in second,
02:04:04 Marvin Fahley-Dogg in third.
02:04:06 And further down, joining them on the podium,
02:04:09 Joseph Chung, Balas Chep, and Pierre Desjardins,
02:04:11 Samhamed in seventh, Christian Zilikinson in eighth,
02:04:13 and Gregory Rigos in ninth.
02:04:16 So looking back, the bottom nine athletes,
02:04:19 Ji-Hoon Lee, who came in tenth,
02:04:21 after starting in first position,
02:04:22 Shuai Liu in eleventh, Martelz Mohamed in twelfth,
02:04:25 Meric Rich in thirteenth, Richard Bereczky,
02:04:27 fourteen, Miles Pillage, fifteen,
02:04:29 Hugo Fleurot, sixteenth, and Todor Mihaljev,
02:04:32 sixteenth, and Christopher Peck came home in eighteenth position.
02:04:39 We are throwing to James in the field,
02:04:41 having a review with the bronze medalist.
02:04:44 Well, actually, we're joined with the silver medalist,
02:04:46 Taishu Seto.
02:04:47 An incredible race.
02:04:49 Just talk to us about the day and your emotions,
02:04:52 because you seemed very excited coming over the finish line.
02:04:56 (speaking Japanese)
02:05:13 Just very incredible.
02:05:17 I have never thought of this emotion ever.
02:05:24 This competition will be the next step.
02:05:31 Just words, of course, to your fans watching back in Japan.
02:05:34 I'm sure there's many people very excited about this performance for you.
02:05:37 Just a word in Japanese to your fans back home.
02:05:40 Just a moment.
02:05:41 A word in Japanese to his fans back home.
02:05:43 (speaking Japanese)
02:05:46 (speaking Japanese)
02:05:59 I want to say all members support me,
02:06:04 and thank you very much.
02:06:06 So happy today.
02:06:08 Many congratulations.
02:06:09 Thank you so much.
02:06:10 Appreciate it.
02:06:11 Thank you.
02:06:12 Thank you.
02:06:13 And a word of words from our silver medalist, Taishu Seto,
02:06:16 who put a fantastic performance in that laser run.
02:06:20 And through and through in this competition,
02:06:21 his enthusiasm just shone upon the bonus round.
02:06:26 Before the start of the laser run,
02:06:28 he's just very exciting and upcoming athlete to watch.
02:06:33 And it was a fantastic performance from him.
02:06:35 (speaking Japanese)
02:06:40 We have Marvin Dogg with James in an interview on the track.
02:06:46 Marvin, congratulations.
02:06:47 It's great to see you back on the podium,
02:06:49 the first podium for you since World Cup final in 2019.
02:06:53 It's been a while, but it's great to see you back on the podium.
02:06:55 You've worked hard for this one.
02:06:57 Yeah, it was like a really long time where I didn't--like, was good.
02:07:01 I didn't know how good--like, it's hard to explain now,
02:07:05 but this was a long time where I didn't show up my level,
02:07:08 and I think it was like a lot of mental problems,
02:07:11 which I tried to fix.
02:07:13 So after Olympics, I just did like one year off,
02:07:16 then I changed my coach,
02:07:18 and last year was like a little bit for coming back,
02:07:21 and now I hope I can rise up to my former level.
02:07:24 We will see.
02:07:25 Well, it's great to see how your journey has taken you back to the podium.
02:07:28 And just a thought on the competition today, especially the riding.
02:07:32 You lost one of your stirrups in the ride.
02:07:34 Still managed to post a perfect score of 300.
02:07:36 A nervy moment for you, but a significant moment nevertheless.
02:07:39 Yeah, for me it's kind of hard because like I think I still got sometimes
02:07:43 the image of like not the best rider.
02:07:45 So every time I want to show up my level, and today the horse was not so easy,
02:07:50 but I thought I could handle it very easy.
02:07:52 And then before the first jump, it just like kind of stopped in front,
02:07:56 then exploded, and I was mid in the air and lost one of the stirs.
02:08:00 Yeah, but at the end, the points count.
02:08:02 But next time I hope it looks a little bit better.
02:08:05 And just finally, a word in German for your friends and family watching back home.
02:08:09 I know you've got a lot of followers back in Germany.
02:08:12 [German]
02:08:20 Dankeschön. We'll see you on the podium. Well done.
02:08:22 Thank you.
02:08:23 That was our bronze medalist of Germany, Marvin Dogg, with a fantastic performance.
02:08:29 He mentioned he wasn't up to his level in the past couple of seasons,
02:08:32 so it's exciting to see him back on the podium and performing at his level.
02:08:37 He's not too keen on keeping that bronze position.
02:08:42 I think he wants to go for gold next time.
02:08:45 So, yeah, exciting.
02:08:47 I think he was holding back the emotion from that interview,
02:08:50 but I think it meant a lot to him here in Sofia just to bring home bronze
02:08:54 and just to show his level and his development throughout the seasons.
02:09:00 He said also that he did change coaches,
02:09:03 and sometimes that could be a factor in an athlete's success.
02:09:08 And we have gold medalist with James on the field, Valentin Proud.
02:09:13 Valentin, that was incredible.
02:09:14 You were made to work very, very hard for that victory,
02:09:17 but you must be delighted.
02:09:18 The first gold medal since the 2021 World Cup final.
02:09:22 Relief and ecstasy, I'm sure, for you.
02:09:24 Yeah, I'm very happy.
02:09:26 First gold medal since 2021, and I worked hard for this.
02:09:32 It's a consequence of hard working with my team,
02:09:36 and it's a good thing for the future.
02:09:39 There's been something about you at this competition
02:09:42 which just seemed to say you're going to get gold.
02:09:45 You fenced so incredibly well.
02:09:47 Your laser run was absolutely fantastic.
02:09:49 Would you say your level is pretty much getting to its best at this point?
02:09:53 Yeah, I like the fight.
02:09:55 I like to fight with my strong concurrent.
02:09:59 I'm happy because I win, and I know I can be better.
02:10:05 Listen, you've been fantastic to watch.
02:10:07 Just a message in French to your French fans watching back home as well.
02:10:10 Thank you all.
02:10:12 I'm really very, very satisfied with the result.
02:10:14 It's hard work.
02:10:15 This new format is very intense for everyone,
02:10:17 very complicated for everyone,
02:10:19 and it's really hard to go and get gold with the top level you have.
02:10:24 There was a very good scoreboard.
02:10:25 I'm very happy, and it's a good thing for the Olympic qualification
02:10:28 which will start this summer.
02:10:30 We can see that the work is progressing little by little,
02:10:32 and it gives me confidence for the rest of the season.
02:10:35 Congratulations.
02:10:37 We'll see you in the World Cup final, back on the top of the podium again.
02:10:39 Congratulations, my friend.
02:10:40 Thank you very much.
02:10:41 Thank you very much.
02:10:42 The World Cup final is a competition I like.
02:10:44 How was our race winner, Valentin Prad?
02:10:49 Just a fantastic week for him.
02:10:52 I mean, we did talk to him before this competition,
02:10:55 and it will be aired on Pentathlon 360 on the next episode.
02:10:59 A little insight into that, he was fairly confident coming into this competition.
02:11:04 I think he was going for gold since the beginning,
02:11:07 but a really good fencing ranking round just set him up to succeed here
02:11:12 in the fourth World Cup, Sofia, Bulgaria,
02:11:15 the final World Cup ahead of this World Cup final in Ankara, Turkey,
02:11:20 which one of the athletes coming out on top will be automatically qualified
02:11:25 for the Paris 2024 Olympics,
02:11:29 which is the ultimate goal for all of the athletes in the field here today
02:11:32 and the ones who have already qualified for the 2024 Olympics.
02:11:37 But good words and happy words there from Valentin Prad,
02:11:45 thanking all the people back home, his family, his friends, his coaches.
02:11:48 He's very grateful and he's an enthusiastic athlete,
02:11:55 and we love to see that passion all around this field.
02:12:00 It's going to be an amazing World Cup final.
02:12:03 I just got that from our director, Oliver Valente,
02:12:06 giving me some behind-the-scenes instructions.
02:12:10 But it has been a fantastic week here in Sofia, Bulgaria.
02:12:15 We still have the mixed relay coming up tomorrow,
02:12:17 so stay tuned for that.
02:12:19 But that concludes the Super Saturday finals day.
02:12:24 Men's final is done and dusted,
02:12:29 and we're almost started with the medal ceremony.
02:12:34 And we have James Zanotakis back in the commentary box.
02:12:37 Hello, James.
02:12:38 Hi. Thanks for holding the fort on your own. You've done a great job.
02:12:42 Mariam's just pushing my microphone close to the mouth.
02:12:45 Couldn't hear me.
02:12:46 Really brilliant event this has been, hasn't it?
02:12:49 And great to see Valentin Prad's top of the podium again.
02:12:54 Great to see Marvin Dogg back on the podium as well.
02:12:56 A couple of firsts since World Cup finals 2019,
02:12:59 since we've seen Marvin on the podium.
02:13:00 2021, since we've seen Valentin.
02:13:03 If you'd have said back in 2019,
02:13:06 we're not going to see Marvin Dogg on the podium again for another three years,
02:13:10 you'd have been shocked, wouldn't you?
02:13:11 Absolutely. But I feel like he's got this different aura about him.
02:13:15 He's much more focused.
02:13:18 And it was an open interview as well, wasn't it?
02:13:20 He said he's struggling sort of mentally with the sport and quite open and honest.
02:13:24 That is very important to recognize.
02:13:26 I mean, these athletes are, they have their own lives.
02:13:30 This is basically just to humanize them a bit.
02:13:33 I mean, they have their struggles. Mental health is a big issue in sports.
02:13:36 Absolutely.
02:13:40 So we've got a bit of a delay. Valentin Prad's gone missing.
02:13:43 What did you do to him, James?
02:13:46 Most of his interview was in French.
02:13:51 Did you understand what he said?
02:13:53 Kind of, yeah. I kind of translated that.
02:13:55 Oh, you did?
02:13:56 Kind of.
02:13:57 Oh, good for you.
02:13:58 Yeah, just got the sense that he was, like most athletes,
02:14:01 thanking his family, coaches and friends and everybody who supported him.
02:14:06 I think his wife's here as well.
02:14:08 I saw her earlier with that.
02:14:11 Well, good news. Valentin Prad's has turned up.
02:14:14 Finish ribbon.
02:14:16 And he is about to make his way on to the podium.
02:14:27 This has been a fun day.
02:14:29 Like I've had fun and I've not even competed.
02:14:31 So it must be exhilarating for the athletes on the podium.
02:14:34 It has been fun to watch, hasn't it?
02:14:38 Absolutely has.
02:14:40 There you have the EYPM president, Dr. Klaus Schurman.
02:14:47 They're just working out who goes where.
02:14:50 Extended podium here in pentathlon, as always.
02:14:54 Marvin Dogg's quickly switching with Taisho Saito.
02:14:59 Saito having to remember that he's second, not third.
02:15:03 There we go. Everyone's in position.
02:15:08 The amount of passion these athletes hold for their sport is impeccable.
02:15:13 I mean, Taisho Saito coming across that line with a big roar.
02:15:18 But we recognize Pierre Desjardins, who came in sixth place.
02:15:22 Two French athletes on the podium.
02:15:26 Balashev came in fifth place.
02:15:30 He was all the way behind.
02:15:33 Good job from him.
02:15:35 Joseph Chung back on the extended podium.
02:15:38 His first extended podium of the year.
02:15:40 The world champion and Olympic champion.
02:15:43 He had a slow first and second shoot.
02:15:46 Certainly the last shoot was much more to the level that we are used to with Zhou Cheng.
02:15:51 But he finished very strong, as he often does.
02:15:55 And it was a fourth place finish for Joseph Chung.
02:15:58 I think he'll be happy. He's pretty satisfied with that.
02:16:00 Heading to, that should be enough to get him to World Cup final, shouldn't it?
02:16:03 A fourth place finish and an 18th place finish should be enough.
02:16:06 I think one of his coaches was saying he's automatically qualified for World Cup final.
02:16:10 I'm not quite sure why, but they were saying.
02:16:12 Maybe because he was the world champion.
02:16:13 Possibly because he's world champion and also is ranked number one.
02:16:16 Anyway, he's in World Cup final regardless of that.
02:16:19 So, back on the podium after a couple of podium finishes in 2019 in Prague
02:16:26 and in Tokyo at the World Cup final.
02:16:28 Marvin Dogg makes it onto the podium, a bronze medal.
02:16:31 And again, another athlete you just had a feeling would finish well.
02:16:35 Marvin Dogg takes bronze here in Sofia.
02:16:39 I honestly think that he did mention he took a year off.
02:16:43 And I think that sometimes that could be beneficial for the athletes to just kind of regroup.
02:16:48 Rethink how they do stuff, how their training is going.
02:16:51 He also mentioned he changes coaches.
02:16:54 So, yeah, it worked in his favor and he's back on the podium.
02:16:57 Mental health is at the forefront of sport conversation at the moment.
02:17:07 So, props to Marvin for talking openly in that interview.
02:17:11 Yeah, not that easy.
02:17:13 Taicho Saito taking silver was absolutely delighted, wasn't he?
02:17:18 A charming, charming athlete.
02:17:20 And great to see him take the silver.
02:17:23 And he really, really celebrated coming out of the line, didn't he?
02:17:25 He was made to work very, very hard for that as well.
02:17:28 So, Taicho Saito with a silver medal.
02:17:32 Well done to the Japanese athletes.
02:17:35 All the results here in Sofia have been remarkable.
02:17:38 We've seen a couple of firsts and a couple of comebacks.
02:17:45 But, yeah, it's a great feeling to see Valentin Prad and Marvin Dogg back on that podium.
02:17:51 So, Taicho Saito has taken silver here in Sofia.
02:17:58 And finally, we award our gold medal to our World Cup champion, Valentin Prad.
02:18:06 Very, very popular.
02:18:07 Big, big cheer.
02:18:10 He's a popular figure here.
02:18:11 As you can see, that's a proud moment for Valentin.
02:18:14 Back on the top step.
02:18:19 And Dr. Klaus Schumann, EIPM president, hands over that gold medal.
02:18:24 Kind of gets you goose bumps.
02:18:27 Just thinking about all the emotions these athletes go through
02:18:31 and all the hard work they've done over not only the past season,
02:18:35 but in their entire career has led up to this moment.
02:18:38 Is he going to get given that big shield as well, by the way?
02:18:41 Because surely that's a bit heavy to take back.
02:18:44 He's looking at it to say, "Am I taking that shield as well?"
02:18:49 No, he's not.
02:18:50 No, these are the plates that they're bringing the awards out on.
02:18:55 Ignore that.
02:18:56 Okay, the music has paused, which means next on the agenda is the French national anthem.
02:19:02 Please stand for the national anthem, "La Marseillaise."
02:19:06 [Music]
02:19:12 [Music]
02:19:18 [Music]
02:19:24 [Music]
02:19:30 [Music]
02:19:36 [Music]
02:19:42 [Music]
02:19:48 [Music]
02:19:54 [Music]
02:20:00 [Music]
02:20:06 [Applause]
02:20:09 A proud moment for all the French athletes as they sing the French national anthem loudly.
02:20:14 Valentin Pras lifting that trophy up high.
02:20:17 A first gold medal since 2021.
02:20:21 In fact, a first medal since 2021.
02:20:24 A charming athlete and great to see him on the top step once again.
02:20:30 Taisho Sato taking silver.
02:20:33 And Mark Van Toor.
02:20:45 So those are all your athletes that are on the podium.
02:20:48 Joseph Chung taking the fourth place.
02:20:52 Finnish Balashchev is fifth.
02:21:01 And of course, Pierre de Jardin taking the sixth.
02:21:03 Those are your six athletes on the top of the podium.
02:21:07 But congratulations to Valentin Pras, Taisho Sato and Marvin Dogg who have done it and done it in style.
02:21:21 Pierre de Jardin and Valentin Pras just posing for photos.
02:21:30 And that concludes what has been a really exciting Super Saturday.
02:21:35 It has to be said a brilliant, brilliant competition here in Sofia in both the men's and the women's.
02:21:40 Many congratulations to Krenza Bryson and to Valentin Pras who are the gold medalists here in Sofia.
02:21:46 That's it for Super Saturday.
02:21:47 We'll be back with mixed relay coverage tomorrow, but we'll leave you with the images of the day.
02:21:52 A big farewell and see you tomorrow. Bye for now.
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