Sri Lanka will make its first-ever appearance as a full modern pentathlon team at the UIPM 2026 Pentathlon World Cup in Cairo, Egypt from April 8 to 12, marking a defining milestone for a sport that only arrived in the country a decade ago.
The national delegation will be led by champions Isiwaruna De Silva and Gayani Dasanayake, both Sri Lanka Air Force athletes. The pair qualified through their performances at the Asian Modern Pentathlon Championships held in Anjo, Japan from November 10–16, 2025.
Modern pentathlon is a composite Olympic discipline combining fencing, swimming, obstacle course, laser-run (running and shooting), and previously equestrian. Competition at the World Cup will take place across five days at the Cairo International Stadium Complex, with athletes from over 30 nations on the start list.
The Modern Pentathlon Federation of Sri Lanka (MPFSL), led by President Nishanthe Piyaseana, introduced the sport locally in 2016. Federation Secretary General Dr. Prabod Munasinghe said the debut was “the result of steady, scientific, and disciplined development” delivered despite the COVID-19 pandemic, economic constraints, and limited sponsorship.
The qualification also secures Sri Lanka a slot in the 2026 Asian Games modern pentathlon field later this year, after which the federation has set its sights on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games as a longer-term target. MPFSL has been working to expand its athlete base from what has remained a small pool of Air Force-backed competitors to a national talent pipeline.
De Silva and Dasanayake will line up in Cairo against seasoned World Cup campaigners including athletes from Hungary, Egypt, South Korea, and France — traditional powerhouses in a discipline where Sri Lanka has never previously featured on an international results sheet.
