Kate French (modern pentathlete)

Kate French (born 11 February 1991) is a British modern pentathlete who competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Kate French
Personal information
NationalityBritish
Born (1991-02-11) 11 February 1991[1]
Gravesend, Kent, England[1]
Height1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Weight60 kg (132 lb)[1]
Sport
Country United Kingdom
SportModern Pentathlon
Coached byIstvan Nemeth
Medal record
Women's modern pentathlon
Representing  Great Britain
World Championships
2013 Kaoshiung Team
2019 Budapest Team
2014 Warsaw Team
2014 Warsaw Mixed Relay
2019 Budapest Individual
European Championships
2013 Drzonkow Team relay
2013 Drzonkow Team
2019 Bath Team
2018 Szekesfehervar Individual
2019 Bath Individual
2016 Sofia Team
World Cup
2015 SarasotaIndividual
2012 Rostov Individual
Junior World Championships
2010 Szekesfehervar Team
Junior European Championships
2010 Golega Team

Personal life

French was born on 11 February 1991 in Meopham, near Gravesend.[2] She completed a degree in sports performance at the University of Bath, where she also trains at the Pentathlon GB High Performance Centre located at the University.[3]

Modern pentathlon

In 2013 French finished in tenth place in the individual event at both the World Championships in held in Kaoshiung, Chinese Taipei and at the European Championships held in Drzonków, Poland. At the European Championships she also won gold medals in the women's team event, competing alongside Mhairi Spence and Samantha Murray,[4] and in the women's relay event, with Murray and Katy Burke.[5] At the World Championships French, Murray and Spence also won the gold medal in the team event.[6]

At the 2014 World Modern Pentathlon Championships held in Warsaw, Poland, French won two silver medals. Competing with Freyja Prentice and Samantha Murray she was part of the women's team that finished second behind China and in the mixed relay event; French and Joe Evans finished second behind Justinas Kinderis and Laura Asadauskaite of Lithuania.[7][8]

She qualified for the modern pentathlon at the 2016 Summer Olympics by finishing eighth at the 2015 European Championships held in Bath.[9] French was placed fifteenth after the first three events but missed only a single target during the combined run and shooting event to secure the top eight finish needed for Olympic qualification.[10] At the same event she won a gold medal in the team event competing alongside Samantha Murray and Freyja Prentice, who finished tenth and thirteenth in the individual event.[10]

In 2016 she placed 5th at the Olympic games after a consistent performance throughout all events, including winning the riding event with a perfect clear round. 2017 saw her most successful season with a silver medal at World Cup 1 in Los Angeles and a Gold medal at World Cup 2 in Cairo. Due to this success she achieved a world ranking high of world number 2.

In 2018 French won the Silver medal in the individual event at the European Championships held in Székesfehérvár, Hungary. The following year, 2019, French repeated her silver medal winning performance in the Individual event and also won Gold in the Team event at the European Championships held in Bath, England.

References
  1. "Samantha Murray". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
  2. "Kate French – Modern Pentathlon". kentsport.org. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  3. "Kate French". University of Bath. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  4. "Great Britain women win European modern pentathlon team gold". BBC Sport. 15 July 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  5. "GB women claim modern pentathlon relay team gold". BBC Sport. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  6. Anderson, Gary (27 August 2013). "Hungary back on top on final day of modern pentathlon World Championships". insidethegames.biz. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  7. "Warsaw 2014 – Murray is the New Women's World Champion and China Take Team Gold in Team Event". UIPM. 6 September 2014. Archived from the original on 30 March 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  8. Ballinger, Steve (8 September 2014). "British duo Kate French and Joe Evans claim mixed relay silver medals at Modern Pentathlon World Championships". Bath Chronicle. Archived from the original on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  9. "Kate French will represent Great Britain in modern pentathlon at the Rio Olympics". Kent Online. 25 August 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  10. "Kate French qualifies for Rio and GB women win gold at Modern Pentathlon Euros in Bath". Bath Chronicle. 23 August 2015. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
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