Riker-Fox Has Best Ever Pentathlon World Cup Result: 8th in Medway, UK

Results Show Promising Future for Canadian Pentathlete

OTTAWA, April 10 /CNW Telbec/ - Alberta's Joshua Riker-Fox came in with his best performance ever in a World Cup Final with an 8th place finish today at World Cup 3 in Medway, England with 5604 points. This is the best result ever for a Canadian Man in a World Cup.

"This is my best performance at a World Cup," said the 2008 Olympian from Delacour, Alberta. "I'm not sure where the confidence came from exactly, but with my coaches John Hawes and Denis Fournier's help, I really felt like I could make a jump today. I am ecstatic!"

Added Riker-Fox, "I fenced effectively. I was 12th after the 3rd event (ride), then moved to 8th, in a very exciting final run/shoot. Positions changed constantly. With strong focus, I slowly worked my way up, and on the last lap moved ahead of four other athletes. This result is very fulfilling. Naturally though, I want more."

After placing first in the qualification on Thursday, Riker-Fox knew he still had a great deal of work to do. "His attitude is fantastic," said National Team Coach John Hawes. "He knew he was competing in the toughest World Cup this year against the 8 top world ranking athletes including World Champion and World number 1 Adam Marosi of Hungary. His focus throughout the day and his ability to stay on task shows that he is maturing as an athlete, and coming of age in the sport of pentathlon." Hawes also added that this 2008 Olympian's result in Medway is "very promising for the future for our Canadian pentathlete who is only 26 years of age."

Added Hawes, "Josh's performance today in being competitive with the best in the world was truly exciting. His group of home coaches have done a fantastic job helping him along the way. The Ares Pentathlon Club and Priori Fencing Club under Denis Fournier, The Calgary Patriot Swim Club under Jamie Connors and the University of Calgary Athletic Club under Doug Lamont can all be very proud of having a hand in this success."

Angela Ives, President of Pentathlon Canada, added: "To put Josh's result at Medway in perspective, only 1 of 11 British men made the final and they are a powerhouse. We are extremely proud of his development. He has the will to succeed in a sport that is hugely popular in Europe, but little known in Canada, but he still loves it. He competed at the 2008 Olympic Games and we will watch his progress as we head to London 2012."

In the Qualification this past Thursday (April 8), Riker-Fox also managed to transform his day into a 1st place finish with 4420 points. "Despite a slow start in the fence, a bit of communication and analysis brought things back on track to a second place finish in the first of the four events," said Riker-Fox. "I swam well, matching my short course best time. What was most promising though is that I was wearing a less race-friendly suit than in the past (due to FINA rule changes). This shows that my fitness is coming along."

World number 1 Adam Marosi (HUN) took first place at World Cup 3, while Ondrej Polivka (CZE) and Alexander Lesun (RUS) came in second and third respectively in today's final of World Cup 3.

Other Canadians at World Cup 3 include Donna Valkalis (Toronto, On), Mathea Stevens (Rockland, On) and Melanie McCann (Parkhill, On). In the women's qualification which took place April 9th, Melanie and Mathea qualified 12 and 13th respectively. They will compete in the Women's Final on April 11, which can be seen on webcast at www.pentathlon.org.

Riker Fox finished 11th at World Cup 1 in Mexico (5600 points), and 39th at World Cup 2 in Egypt (4028 points), this year.

Riker-Fox is the reigning Canadian National Champion and is set to compete in the 38th edition of the Canadian National Modern Pentathlon Championships which will be held in his home province in Red Deer, Alberta, on July 17 and 18, 2010.

Pentathlon Canada (www.pentathloncanada.ca) is dedicated to developing high-performance athletes with a focus on competing at the highest levels of international competitions.

Photo of Joshua Riker-Fox competing in Medway (April 8th) can be found at http://www.pentathlon.org/index.php?option=com_phocagallery&view=category&id=12%3Amedway-2010&Itemid=132&limitstart=60 (see photo 2ap181, Riker-Fox during qualification, in red shorts)

Results for World Cup 3 can be found at: http://www.pentathlongb.org/mpwc/results.php

    
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Fact sheet

Modern Pentathlon

Modern pentathlon is five sports combined into four events, competed in the span of one day. Athletes move from one event to the next with a short break between. Pentathletes accumulate points in each event; the athlete with the most points at the end of the day wins.

Fencing - Modern pentathletes fence using an épée, which is a sharp-pointed duelling sword with its end blunted. The target area is the entire body from head to toe. Bouts last for one minute, or until one hit or touch is scored. Pentathletes fence every pentathlete in the competition, in a round robin format. Points are awarded according to the ratio of bouts won to bouts lost.

Swimming - Pentathletes swim 200, 100, or 50 metres depending on age. Freestyle or front crawl is the stroke of choice because it is the fastest. The faster the time the more points the athlete earns.

Equestrian Riding - Pentathletes do not ride their own horse in competition. Instead, pentathletes draw a number to determine their horse. Athletes have a 20-minute warm up and five practice jumps before entering the riding course. The course consists of 12 jumps including a double and a triple jump. Athletes are awarded 1,200 pentathlon points at the start of the competition and lose points for missing jumps and time faults. Spectators are asked to remain quiet while athletes are riding; however applause and cheering is appreciated after the course is completed.

Shoot/Run - Pentathletes finish the competition with a shoot/run combination. Athletes shoot with .177-calibre air pistols at five "dropping" targets 10 metres away. They then run one kilometre, shoot another five targets, followed by another kilometre, five more targets and finally a kilometre run to the finish. Points are awarded by time. Total points after the first three events in the competition determines the start order. The athlete with the most points starts first, with the remaining athletes starting in a staggered order determined by one second intervals for every four point difference. The first athlete to finish the shoot/run wins the overall pentathlon competition.

For further information: Angela Ives, Pentathlon Canada president, C.: [phone] and [email protected]