Australia wins shock gold in modern pentathlon

Contributor
Michael Oxford
Australia wins shock gold in modern pentathlon image

Australia has won their eighth gold medal at the Rio Olympics with Chloe Esposito coming from seventh position to win the women's modern pentathlon.

MORE: Olympic medal tally per capita

The 24-year-old was 45 seconds behind the leader heading into the final stage of the competition - the 3200m run and pistol shooting.

Esposito hit the 20 pistol targets with only 21 shots and took the lead with one lap remaining, before clinching gold with a 16 second margin.

It is the first Olympic medal Australia has ever won in the sport.

The modern pentathlon features five different events: fencing, 200m freestyle swimming, show jumping, and a final combined event of a 3200m run and pistol shooting.