In the humidity of Guiyang, Jana Attia of Egypt set the obstacle-course world record in the women’s final at the 2026 UIPM Pentathlon World Championships. Her time of 25.17 seconds reclaimed the mark from compatriot Farida Khalil, who had held it since qualification earlier that week.
A clean run under pressure
The final obstacle discipline saw no falls or faults across its nine heats. But the Egyptian women operated on a different level, and Attia made that plain from the moment she stepped onto the course.
She used her height advantage to move cleanly across the eight obstacles. She scrambled up the finish wall without pause and hit the buzzer to stop the clock on a historic new mark.
A record changes hands
Attia had never set a world record before, having long trained in the shadow of the dominant Khalil. When Khalil followed moments later, the teenager looked calm, but her time of 26.18 seconds was more than a second slower.
The sequence confirmed a brief but telling shift. A record that had belonged to Egypt all season, repeatedly lowered by Khalil, now carried Attia's name for the first time.
Attia’s world record did not carry her to the overall podium. Gold went to Blanka Guzi of Hungary on 1,485 points, silver to Khalil, and bronze to Kerenza Bryson of Great Britain. But on a day of fine margins, hers was the mark nobody could touch.
