Amro ElGeziry Sets Olympic Record In Modern Pentathlon Debut For Team USA
by Karen Price
Amro Elgeziry celebrates setting an Olympic record and winning in the 200 metre freestyle swimming heat of the Men's Modern Pentathlon at The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Olympic on August 07, 2021 in Chofu, Japan.
Amro ElGeziry is a veteran of the Olympic Games, having competed in modern pentathlon three times before this summer.
All three times, however, were for Egypt.
This is the first year he was able to compete for the U.S. in the unique sport that includes five very different events: fencing, freestyle swimming, equestrian show-jumping, shooting and running. ElGeziry finished 25th on Saturday.
“So many emotions right now,” he said. “It was a rough day for me, but I’m happy to be here, happy to compete and represent the U.S. It wasn’t my best performance today.”
The competition wasn’t completely without its highlights for ElGeziry, however. He set an Olympic record with a time of 1:52.96 in the swim portion of the event, which covers 200 meters and was held outdoors at Tokyo Stadium. He also scored 290 out of 300 points in riding, which is made even more difficult because horse and rider are only introduced just prior to the competition. Fencing was where ElGeziry struggled, however, and he started the laser run 46 seconds behind eventual gold medalist Joseph Choong of Great Britain. Choong, who made it a sweep for Great Britain in the sport following Kate French’s win the day before, finished with an Olympic record 1,482 points.
ElGeziry, who moved to the U.S. after marrying fellow pentathlete Isabella Isaksen and currently serves in the U.S. Army, finished with 1,358 points. ElGeziry’s two brothers also compete in the sport.
“It is a dream come true to me,” he said of representing the U.S. “I'm so proud to represent the U.S. and the U.S. Army. I have worked so hard for this and I'm speechless. I can be grateful for the opportunity to be here and represent the U.S.”
Samantha Schultz, who also serves in the Army, competed for the U.S. and finished 21st in the women’s event. The Denver, Colorado, native made her Olympic debut and had her best result in the laser run, finishing 14th.
Want to follow Team USA athletes during the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020? Visit TeamUSA.org/Tokyo2020 to view the medal table, results and competition schedule.