Tetrathlon is a team and individual competition organised by the Pony Club for its members. It comprises shooting, swimming, running and riding. It is a variant of and major recruiting ground for the Olympic sport Modern Pentathlon. Competition levels progress with age. The shoot involves shooting with air pistols at targets between 7 and 10 metres away, the swim is the distance swum in 2 to 4 minutes, the run is normally cross country over a distance of between 1000m and 3000m and the ride is over a cross country course, the most exhilarating phase for many.
During the winter there are Triathlon competitions (no riding) which culminate in a Championships held in March. From April we move on to full Tetrathlons which can be held over 1 or 2 days and cater for all levels. As with the other disciplines, Area qualifiers are held in July with classes at Junior, Intermediate and Open levels; the Championships is run over 3 days in August. In addition, successful Juniors and Seniors can be invited to represent their region in an International competition against other English regions, Scotland, Wales and Border, The Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland.
Younger members can also get involved in Tetrathlon and Triathlon competitions with sections for 11 and under (Minimus), 9 and under (Tadpoles) and 7 and under (Beanies).Tetrathlon is a very popular discipline within the South Berkshire and we regularly send members to the Championships.
Early in the year we run our own Triathlon which is always very well attended by other branches and a great start to our Pony Club year with lots of our own members both competing and helping (along with their parents!)
Within the branch we offer regular year round shooting and riding training with expert instructors.
Shooting is co-ordinated by Brian Goodenough who has been involved in South Berkshire Tetrathlon for many years. If you would like to take part in a Tetrathlon or Triathlon you will need to go to some shooting training and be signed off so please do get in touch with brian@elingfarm.co.uk
Our Eventing Discipline Head regularly organises cross country training sessions and again you will need to be signed off before entering your first Tetrathlon. Please see our SBPC Calendar page to find out when the next training session will be or contact our Eventing Discipline Head (see Contact Us page)
For more in depth information about the discipline please see the Tetrathlon Rule Book 2023 on the main Pony Club website. Any amendments can be found on the at the bottom of the Rule Book Page of the Pony Club Website.