UIPM 2026 Pentathlon Junior World Championships: Karbownik (POL) claims the crown in dramatic Women's Final
She has already established herself at senior level but the title of junior world champion is another major accolade for Malgorzata Karbownik of Poland, who won a compelling Women’s Final at the UIPM 2026 Pentathlon Junior World Championships in Kaunas (LTU).
Karbownik (POL), 21, announced herself as a starlet of the sport with a 4th-place finish at the UIPM 2025 Pentathlon World Cup Final. And today she cemented her potential with a strong and decisive performance to win gold with a world record 1,473 points, finishing 8sec ahead of silver medallist Katharina Jurt of Switzerland.
Behind them, there was an epic sprint for bronze that saw Ganah Elgindy of Egypt hold off the threat of Blanka Bauer of Hungary by 1sec. Lucie Hlavackova of Czechia and Jana Attia (EGY) rounded out the top six.
The Team gold medal was won by Switzerland, with Egypt claiming silver and Hungary bronze.
MEDALLIST REACTION
Gold medallist Karbownik (POL) said: “I had a big, big hope that my shooting today would be not maybe perfect, but very good. I think maybe everyone is faster than me, so I knew I would have to shoot very fast if I want to achieve my dream and take a medal in this competition.
“I felt a little bit of pressure, but I tried not to think about this. I know what I have to do, and I did it. That's my biggest success in my sport career. I feel amazing right now, but I think I don't believe it yet at this moment.
“I'm so happy. I'm. I was so happy that my parents and my Grandma could see these performances. Today is perfect. My Mum and Dad try to be here every time for my competitions.”
Silver medallist Katharina Jurt (SUI) said: “Amazing. I still can't believe it. I didn't think I was going to be that good today because honestly, I felt very tired today, but now I figured that if you feel tired, it's the best way to do a competition!
“I absolutely didn’t know what was happening. I didn't think about anything. I didn't know where I was in the field. I just shot, I don't know what I did. It was amazing.
“I also want to send congratulations to my bigger sister [Anna, gold medallist at the UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Cup Final]. I think that gave me some extra motivation.”
Bronze medallist Elgindy (EGY) said: “I can't believe that I won another medal. Actually, after World Cup Pazardzhik, I had a couple of injuries, which took me away from training for a while, and then in the World Cup Final, I got injured inside the competition, so I didn't perform well.
“So after the World Cup Final, I didn't have that much time to train. So I knew I would not be in my peak in this World Championships, and also I fell in the Obstacle in the Semi-final, so I had to run fast in the Semi-final to qualify. Today I wasn't expecting anything from myself. I told myself to give my own best and enjoy it, and then it ended with a medal. I can't believe it happened again.
“Actually, I know my shooting is good, so I told myself I didn't have to do much work in the shooting. I shot well and finished third.”
Fencing
When a top-seeded fencer defends their No.1 position in the face of stern competition it is clearly no accident that they end up with the maximum score of 250 points. And that was the outcome of Fencing as Nadja Farmand (GER) maintained her levels throughout four fights.
It was obvious there would be no easy wins from the early stages when Florina Jurt (SUI) pushed Farmand (GER) all the way and Hlavackova (CZE) did the same to No.2 seed Zeina Amer (EGY). Fernandes (CZE) gave Elgindy (EGY) a similar fright in the Top 8, while Blanka Bauer (HUN) upset No.3 seed Jana Attia (EGY) despite almost losing a 4-0 lead.
The Egyptian challenge continued to fade in the Top 8 phase as the Europeans took over: Karbownik (POL) accounted for Elgindy (EGY) before facing the immovable Farmand (GER), and Amer (EGY) was beaten by Varga (HUN) who then pushed Flavin (FRA) all the way, losing on priority after a 4-4 draw.
Into the Top 2 where two left-handers faced off, and Flavin (FRA) threatened an upset after moving into the ascendancy at 2-1, only to find the accuracy of Farmand (GER) irresistible, the top seed clinically executing a 5-2 win to take 250 points forward.
Obstacle Racing
With so much at stake in the Final, there was some conservatism at play on the Obstacle course, not least from world record-holder Florina Jurt (SUI) who delivered a controlled 29.77sec. Her twin Katharina Jurt (SUI) went next and made light work of the Flying Hoops with excellent core strength, but slowed up towards the end and finished with the exact same time as her sister.
Could any of the Egyptians take advantage? Attia (EGY) also ducked under 30sec to carry forward the same number of points (356), before Amer (EGY) and Elgindy (EGY) faced off. A wonderfully smooth performance by Amer (EGY) showed what was possible on the course, and she completed the Finish Wall athletically for a standout time of 28.40 that took her into the overall lead, at least until the final heat when Farmand (GER) drew level and Flavin (FRA) with a 30.42 moved clear.
Only one athlete, Chloe Johnson of Great Britain, faulted after working too hard to recover from an early error.
Swimming
A dynamic swim by Karbownik (POL) in the final heat saw the world No.12 move into pole position in the race for gold. Her time of 1min 01.47sec put psychological and chronological distance between herself and heat rivals Farmand (EGY), Flavin (FRA) and Amer (EGY).
The Pole’s time was only bettered by home favourite Guste Peciulyte of Lithuania, who broke the 1min mark with an excellent 59.86.
Laser Run
Starting with a 10sec advantage over Farmand (GER) and distance to rest of the pack, if Karbownik (POL) was feeling pressure she did a good job of concealing it. Fluent shooting was the key to her success, especially at the second and third visits to the range where the green lights flashed in rapid sequence, leaving her rivals deflated.
Farmand (GER) kept up with Karbownik (POL) on the range, but found herself reeled in repeatedly by the fast-running Flavin (FRA). Meanwhile, Elgindy (EGY) was the sharp shooter in the first pack, with Bauer (HUN) always threatening to leave the second pack behind and join the main hunt.
So it proved, with those two athletes joining an incredible race for bronze after Flavin (FRA) froze on the fourth shoot. By then, Katharina Jurt (SUI) had also moved into prominence with consistent running and shooting, and when Bauer (HUN) struggled to get her final set on target, the Swiss left the range with Elgindy (EGY) and quickly left her behind to claim a silver that she could barely believe when she reached the finish line. Behind her, a determined Elgindy (EGY) held off a marauding Bauer (HUN).
- UIPM 2026 Pentathlon Junior & U17 World Championships: All You Need to Know
- Competition results
- Photography via Flickr
Watch and follow
The UIPM 2026 Pentathlon Junior & U17 World Championships take place from July 23-29. The remaining schedule is as follows:
Tuesday July 28
- U17 Women’s Final
- Junior Women’s Relay & Men’s Relay
Wednesday July 29
- U17 Mixed Relay
- Junior Mixed Relay
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