pentathlon

plural pentathlons · plural pentathla

1. An ancient athletics discipline, featuring five events: stadion, wrestling, long jump, javelin and discus

   Synonyms: ancient pentathlon, Greek pentathlon, ancient Greek pentathlon

2. abbreviationellipsisathleticsEllipsis of women's pentathlon (“a 20th-century athletics discipline for women, the women's counterpart of the men's decathlon, the predecessor to the women's heptathlon, featuring five events: hurdles, shot put, high jump, long jump, and a run”).
3. abbreviationellipsisathleticsEllipsis of modern pentathlon, a discipline with five events based on late-19th century basic military skills.

   In the end, why not be happy with both, with the BMXes and the pentathlons, with the swans of synchro and the Quasimodos of wrestling? Sweet.

   2008 August 21, “The old school survives at the Olympics, amid new events”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 23 Jan 2025

   1 more example

   Dwindling interest and a reputation for being outdated couldn’t change modern pentathlon. A brief video clip of a coach punching a horse at the Tokyo Olympics has altered it forever. After more than a century of having its participants compete by running, shooting, fencing, swimming and riding, modern pentathlon will drop equestrian jumping from the event, the sport’s federation said Thursday.

   2021 March 11, Victor Mather, “Modern Pentathlon Drops Equestrian Competition After Abuse Claims”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 05 Nov 2025