Team USA Concludes World Cup Pazardzhik, Looks Ahead to Budapest

📍 Pazardzhik, Bulgaria

🗓️ May 13–17, 2026

Team USA Pentathlon Multisport continued its 2026 international season this week at World Cup Pazardzhik in Bulgaria, the next stop on the UIPM World Cup circuit. The competition brought together a deep international field, with athletes competing through qualification rounds for a chance to advance to the semifinals.

Team USA was represented by 10 athletes, with four women and six men competing across the qualification rounds. While no U.S. athletes advanced to the next round, the competition produced several encouraging performances, important learning moments, and valuable international experience as the team continues through the World Cup season.

“We just finished the World Cup qualification competition in Pazardzhik,” said Team USA coach Vaho Iagorashvili. “Although no USA athletes advanced to the semifinals, there were still many positive signs throughout the competition. The team showed improvement across several disciplines and competed with greater confidence against strong international fields.”

Iagorashvili also noted that several athletes faced challenges on the obstacle course, but emphasized the importance of those moments in the development process.

“What gives confidence moving forward is the resilience and attitude of the group,” Iagorashvili said. “The athletes continued to fight through adversity, gained valuable international experience, and showed progress that will help prepare them for future competitions.”

Team USA coach Thora Meyer-Efland also highlighted the team’s energy and support throughout the competition.

“I was impressed by what a great team the athletes formed at the World Cup in Bulgaria,” Meyer-Efland said. “Everyone supported each other and cheered on the athletes during the competition. I saw some outstanding individual performances, and for the younger athletes, gaining experience was the main focus.”

On the women’s side, Rebecca Langrehr led Team USA in Qualification Group B, finishing 16th with 1398 points. Langrehr delivered one of Team USA’s strongest discipline performances of the event, placing 5th in her group in fencing with 244 points and 21 victories. She added 323 points in obstacle, 279 in swimming, and 552 in laser run.

In Qualification Group A, Madison Gonzalez finished 24th with 1338 points. Gonzalez produced two top-10 discipline finishes in her group, placing 8th in swimming with 282 points and a time of 1:03.73, and 10th in laser run with 581 points. Her full discipline scores were 202 fencing, 273 obstacle, 282 swimming, and 581 laser run.

Also competing in Qualification Group B, Phaelen French finished 31st with 1284 points. French scored 166 in fencing, 316 in obstacle, 250 in swimming, and 552 in laser run. Reflecting on the transition to the new modern pentathlon format, French said she still misses the riding discipline but enjoys the creativity brought by obstacle racing. She also noted progress in obstacle, saying her performance improved by a few seconds from the Charlotte Invitational.

In Qualification Group C, Hannah Kim finished 29th with 1213 points, scoring 148 in fencing, 305 in obstacle, 276 in swimming, and 484 in laser run. For Kim, the competition was an important step into the international field.

“The biggest takeaway is that dreams feel a lot less intimidating once you step into them,” Kim said. “There was a lot to learn in my first big competition — the logistics, the rhythm, the unexpected — but now the unknown feels exciting instead of intimidating, and I’m even more motivated to improve.”

Team USA had six men competing across all four qualification groups. For five of the six athletes, Pazardzhik marked their first World Cup appearance of the season, while Michael Arishita returned after competing earlier this season at the World Cup stop in Cairo.

In Qualification Group A, Temirkhan “Tim” Sabdenbek finished 21st with 1456 points. Sabdenbek opened his World Cup season with 201 in fencing, 324 in obstacle, 305 in swimming, and 626 in laser run. His 305-point swim was tied for the top U.S. men’s swim score of the day.

Sabdenbek said one of his biggest lessons from Pazardzhik was learning how to respond when things do not go perfectly.

“It is very important to stay focused and calm even if something goes wrong,” Sabdenbek said. “I know this is going to be my next step forward — staying focused in chaos.”

In Qualification Group B, Tristen Bell placed 18th with 1472 points. Bell produced one of Team USA’s top men’s fencing results, scoring 215 points with 14 victories. He added 344 in obstacle, 300 in swimming, and 613 in laser run.

Qualification Group C featured two U.S. athletes, led by Luke Filar, who finished 20th with 1483 points. Filar delivered one of Team USA’s best single-discipline results of the competition, placing 5th in his group in obstacle with a time of 0:22.31 for 379 points. His full discipline scores were 187 fencing, 379 obstacle, 292 swimming, and 625 laser run.

“My biggest takeaway from World Cup was how important it is to regulate your emotions during fencing and not get stuck in a rut,” Filar said. “I also feel like I have a much better understanding of where I can improve.”

Also in Group C, Michael Arishita finished 27th with 1446 points. After competing in Cairo earlier this season, Arishita improved his overall score in Pazardzhik and continued gaining World Cup experience. His full discipline scores were 152 fencing, 360 obstacle, 299 swimming, and 635 laser run.

“I’d say the biggest takeaway is how much there is to learn from these events,” Arishita said. “Competing with the best in the world shows you what you need to work on across all five sports.”

In Qualification Group D, Tyler Evans posted Team USA’s top men’s overall score of the day, finishing 18th with 1503 points. Evans delivered a balanced performance across the disciplines, scoring 215 in fencing, 340 in obstacle, 301 in swimming, and 647 in laser run. His 647-point laser run was the top laser run score among the U.S. men and placed him 10th in his group in the discipline.

Evans said he felt close to the semifinal standard, but a fall during the obstacle round had a major impact on his final result.

“With an average performance, I know I can qualify for the semifinals,” Evans said. “Falling during the OCR round obviously had a major impact on my overall result. Had I put together one of my normal clean runs, I would have advanced to the semifinals.”

Hayden Marrs also competed in Group D, finishing 28th with 1071 points after being eliminated in the obstacle discipline. Marrs continued through the remaining events and scored 166 in fencing, 305 in swimming, and 600 in laser run. His 305-point swim tied Sabdenbek for the top U.S. men’s swim score of the day.

Marrs said Pazardzhik taught him the importance of adjusting his approach during competition.

“Elite performance sometimes requires a methodical pace,” Marrs said. “Intensity will always be foundational to my athlete identity, but working toward eliteness means I must garner the mental dexterity to change paces as needed.”

Although World Cup Pazardzhik concluded in the qualification rounds for Team USA, the event gave the U.S. delegation important benchmarks across all disciplines. The team saw top-10 group performances in fencing, obstacle, swimming, and laser run, while several athletes gained their first World Cup experience of the season.

“The performances shown provide a strong foundation to build on,” Meyer-Efland said. “All of the athletes are highly motivated, and I really enjoyed accompanying and supporting the athletes together with Vaho at such an important international competition.”

Team USA will now turn its attention to the next stop on the UIPM World Cup circuit, set for Budapest, Hungary, June 9–13.