The modern pentathlon consisted of five events. The competition used a point-for-place system, with the lowest total across the five events winning.[3]
Riding: a show jumping competition. Riders started with 100 points and could lose points either through obstacle faults or going over the 10-minute time limit. Negative scores were possible. Ties were broken by the specific time taken, with the quicker rider winning.
Fencing: a round-robin, one-touch épée competition. Score was based on number of bouts won.
Shooting: a rapid fire pistol competition, with 20 shots (each scoring up to 10 points) per competitor.