There will be many firsts at the Youth Olympic Games (YOG), but none more so than in modern pentathlon, one of 26 Olympic sports to be contested at the inaugural Games next month.

For the first time in the sport’s 98-year history, pulse-emitting laser guns will replace traditional pellet-firing air pistols in the shooting event.

The German-made guns are virtual replicas of the originals – right down to weight, standard pistol grip and the air pressure container, which simulates recoil when fired.

A key difference is the gun barrel, which will be replaced by a laser-based barrel powered by a single AA battery.

The success of the guns will be integral to the modern pentathlon governing body's decision to introduce it as a permanent fixture in top-level competitions from January.

The motion to introduce laser guns in favour of the standard 4.5mm (.177) calibre air pistols was put forward last year at a Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne's (UIPM's) congress.

Said a UIPM spokesman: "Improved safety for athletes and spectators alike was the main reason, but it also makes the sport more environmentally friendly."

The lack of safety issues to contend with at the Games will also enable spectators to be seated just 20m away from the shooting range, said Karen Myers, the sport's competition manager.

"The shooting range at the World Cup final was about 100m away from the spectators, so they had to watch the action on large television screens," she added.

"Historically, modern pentathlon has always been a well-watched sport, but the changes at the YOG will make it an even more compelling affair."

Indeed, tickets to the event, from Aug 21-24 at the Singapore Sports School, have been sold out.

The weapon change also calls for specially designed electronic targets, which receive the laser pulses emitted by the gun. A light above the athletes will switch from red to green to indicate a hit.

They will also be able to see exactly where each shot lands via a laptop located next to them, allowing for adjustments to their aim.

While the guns are an unknown quantity to most modern pentathletes competing at the Games, Singapore's Valerie Lim has tried out the system in Poland, where she is training.

"The fact that I don’t have to reload after each shot will take some getting used to, and the recoil is also slightly lesser than my own pistol," she added in a phone interview from Drzonkow.

The switch to laser technology marks the second major change in the sport since the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Modern pentathlon had already merged two of its five sports, running and shooting, into a combined final event in a bid to make the sport more exciting for spectators.

In the combined event, athletes have to register five shots on target at a shooting range, then embark on a 1,000m run. They will repeat the cycle two more times, before crossing the finishing line.

As Nicholas Fang, president of the Singapore Modern Pentathlon Association, put it: "The sport has always been seen as somewhat traditional. With the changes being made in recent years, it opens up lots of options for us to broaden its appeal in Singapore."

Although the technology was expected to make its debut at June's World Cup final in Moscow, the electronic targets were not yet ready.

But UIPM president Klaus Schormann had insisted in an interview earlier this year that the technology was a robust one, having stood up to intensive testing against water, fog and cross-firing.

A total of 80 guns, along with 38 electronic targets, are expected to arrive in Singapore tomorrow.

Introduced in 1912 by modern Olympics founder Pierre de Coubertin, modern pentathlon is a sports contest that features five separate events – pistol shooting, fencing, swimming, horse-riding and running.

However, horse-riding will not be included at the YOG as the athletes (14 to 18 years) are still underaged.

Lee Min Kok
SYOGOC