De Luca was so strong that the 2016 Champion of Champions, Patrick Dogue of Germany, had to settle for silver despite a very impressive performance of his own. Frenchman Valentin Belaud, who was second last year, went down one rung finishing third yesterday.
The victory should be a source of great confidence for De Luca, who until yesterday had a tough 2017. He also had missed a podium finish at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, finishing fifth after a sprint finish.
The 2012 European champion and winner of the World Cup Final in 2015, however, was determined to make it count yesterday. After the victory, De Luca said that it had been a ‘long day’ but a fruitful one and praised the facilities at Qatar Foundation Recreation Centre and Al Shaqab and also the local organising committee.
“I had already competed twice in the Champion of Champions here in Qatar and everything works well – the food, the timings, the venue – it’s very well organised and I think it would be great to see some more pentathlon competitions come here in future,” he said.
De Luca used his fencing prowess to take control of the competition. He took the lead after a score of 22V/8D, with Lesun proving his closest challenger. Italy’s Daniele Colasanti, the 2017 junior world champion and Dogue ensured they would be in the mix with 18V/12D each.
Each of the main contenders stayed on course for the podium during the Riding, with Lesun incurring the most damage with 18 penalty points. Dogue and Colasanti enjoyed the only two clear rounds while De Luca dropped only six points to ensure he would start the combined event (running and shooting) in first place.
Going into the final event, De Luca enjoyed a 17 second advantage ahead of Colasanti, who was under pressure on the start line from Dogue, Lesun and Joseph Choong, and whose nerves on the shooting range ultimately cost him a medal.
Belaud started sixth but made up lots of ground and moved into third place after the second shoot, where Lesun began to drift back. De Luca and Dogue moved unchallenged through their laps and the only suspense was reserved for the battle for bronze, as Colasanti fought tenaciously to catch Belaud but ultimately in vain.
Olympic champion Lesun finished 5th with Pavel Ilyashenko of Kazakhstan, Joseph Choong of Britain, and Taishu Sato of Japan completing the top eight.
UIPM President Dr Klaus Schormann was full of praise of Qatar and called the event a success. “I congratulate all the athletes, the women yesterday and today the men, and to everyone who has been involved in making this UIPM Champion of Champions such a big success. The organizational level was top class as ever, as one would expect in Qatar,” Schormann said.
Qatar had no representation this year as Khalid al-Nuaimi, who had participated in the last edition, was out with a shoulder injury.
Qatar hosted the event for the fourth consecutive year. This was the first time the Qatar Equestrian and Modern Pentathlon Federation organised the event after both the bodies merged earlier this year. Champion of Champions series brings together the best UIPM ranked athletes from around the globe for a spectacular event to crown the best male and female Modern Pentathletes in the world.
Top 10 Results
1. Riccardo de Luca (Italy) 1403 points; 2. Patrick Dogue (Germany) 1394; 3. Valentin Belaud (France) 1369; 4. Daniele Colasanti (Italy) 1366; 5. Aleksander Lesun (Russia) 1348; 6. Pavel Ilyashenko (Kazakhstan) 1343; 7. Joseph Choong (Great Britain) 1335; 8. Taishu Sato (Japan) 1328; 9. Sergio Villamayor (Argentina) 1280; 10. Manuel Padilla (Mexico) 1278