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- Modern pentathlon authorities have voted to remove horse riding from the sport, reports The Guardian.
- The sport gained international attention at the Tokyo Olympics when a coach punched a horse
- In an effort to stop such a thing ever happening again, horse riding will now be replaced by cycling.
Modern pentathlon's governing body has secretly voted to remove horse riding from the sport and replace it with cycling, sources have told the Guardian newspaper.
The decision taken by the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) comes following distressing scenes at the Tokyo Olympics in which a horse was punched by a coach.
German coach Kim Raisner struck Annika Schleu's horse "Saint Boy" after the animal refused to jump a fence during the show-jumping round of the women's event.
Raisner could also be heard urging Schleu to "really hit" the horse. She was later kicked out of the games, with the UIPM saying the event caused "distress both inside and outside the global UIPM Sports community."
The incident garnered massive attention for the relatively obscure sport, leading animal rights groups and fans alike to call for urgent changes to avoid similar things happening in future.
The UIPM launched an urgent investigation, creating a working group of some of the sport's greatest ever participants to try and solve the issues.
According to The Guardian, the decision to swap from horse riding to cycling has been taken in the hope that the modern pentathlon can preserve its status as an Olympic sport ahead of Paris 2024.
The UIPM refused to comment when asked about the reported swap by The Guardian, however it in a statement it said: "As part of UIPM's commitment to maintaining a strong, dynamic profile for modern pentathlon, a series of strategic meetings are being held.
"These meetings will include an upcoming call with national federations later this week. The outcome of these meetings will be detailed in a press release to be published on 4 November."
Kate Allenby, a former modern pentathlete who won bronze for Great Britain at Sydney 2000, said removing horse riding from the sport would be a "disaster."
"This needs talking about because it's not modern pentathlon if it hasn't got riding in it," she told The Guardian.
The Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider on The Guardian's report.