Isla Thomas recently qualified for the World Championships in Bath, Great Britain, this August but has instead opted to participate in the African Continental Modern Pentathlon in Cairo.
Isla explained that she qualified for the Laser Run World Championships in Bath, Great Britain, by finishing 3rd at the SA national championships in Nelspruit, where she ran 10:52 for four sets of five hits of shooting from 10m with four sets of 600m running.
“My coach and I have decided to focus my travels on modern pentathlon; thus, I have decided to not travel to Bath and rather travel to Cairo to attend the African Continental Modern Pentathlon championships in Cairo, Egypt, to be held August 29 to September 1.
She is looking forward to the championships, and her goal is to qualify for the finals of the Africa Champs and improve on her total points from the Swiss Open.
Her school, Brescia House, and her parents congratulate her on her achievement.
Isla is a 15-year-old sportswoman who has been doing the modern pentathlon, which consists of horse riding (show jumping), cross-country running, laser shooting, fencing, and swimming, for nine years.
She adds that she has participated in the following sub-disciplines: biathle (a continuous sport that involves a run, swim, and run combination often done on the beach), triathle (a sport that involves running, laser shooting, and swimming over several laps) and laser run (shooting and running).
“I have loved to compete in swimming since an early age. When I was seven, I was invited to a run-swim-run event, which I took part in and enjoyed. I continued to take part in biathle events and through them, I was exposed to laser shooting for the triathle and laser run.”
Even though she found shooting difficult at the age of 11, she went on to add fencing and horse riding, which enabled her to compete in the full modern pentathlon.
“Modern pentathlon offers so much variety that it keeps me interested. I have made many friends through competing across South Africa and internationally. The community of athletes keeps me inspired and motivated to perform and improve my skills, and I hope one day to qualify for the Olympics.”
“I am incredibly proud of how Isla has improved in her sports through a lot of hard work. In addition, she continues to ensure that her schoolwork gets attention, which often means she makes a lot of sacrifices.
“Isla has achieved so far in her short sports career, but what makes me most proud of her is how she continues to enjoy her sport and motivates herself to do better,” said her father Bruce.
“Trust in the work you have put in, trust in yourself and believe that you are ready to achieve.”
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