Italy's Elena Micheli, a silver medallist at the 2019 World Championships which were also held in Hungary's capital, won the first women's event of the season at the World Cup in Cairo last month, while France's Christopher Patte triumphed in the men's competition.

Mixed team relay gold went to the host nation Cairo.

The finals were held under a new 90-minute format featuring riding, fencing, swimming and the laser run, following on from qualifiers and semi-finals.

This revamped format is set to feature at the Paris 2024 Olympics, but drew some criticism and concerns over athlete welfare on its debut in Cairo.

Britain's Sydney 2000 Olympic bronze medallist Kate Allenby - a member of the Pentathlon United pressure group which has called on the UIPM Executive Board to step down following the controversial decision to axe the equestrian element of the sport after Paris 2024 - said it put athletes' welfare at risk.

"The UIPM Medical Committee are surveying the athletes on the load of the new format," Allenby told insidethegames.

"But looking at social media and athletes' interviews, the constant theme has been that they are tired from the new format.

"The rounds and heats are exhausting, and athletes' welfare has to be properly looked after.

"There is also the issue of riding not being used until the final at World Cups.

"It means tetrathletes rather than pentathletes are qualifying for the final and the emphasis on riding is diminishing, which is a problem for athlete safety and horse welfare when we get to the final."

Competition is due to begin with the men's qualifiers tomorrow at the University of Public Service, followed by the women's qualifiers on Wednesday (April 27).

This stage of the competition features fencing, swimming and the laser run.

The men's semi-finals are due to be held across Wednesday and Thursday (April 28), beginning with a fencing ranking round and followed by a fencing bonus round, swimming and the laser run.

A similar schedule is in place for the women's semi-finals on Thursday and Friday (April 29), although this also includes a "jumping test".

Individual finals featuring all five sports within modern pentathlon are scheduled for Saturday (April 30), followed by the mixed relay with a fencing ranking round, riding, fencing bonus round, swimming and a laser run on Sunday (May 1).

The UIPM World Cup in Budapest is notably due to feature a physical meeting of the Fifth Discipline Working Group, where it is set to make a final decision on a new discipline to replace riding and report to the Executive Board before its meeting on Monday (May 2).

Riding was dropped shortly after German coach Kim Raisner was sent home in disgrace for punching a horse in the women's competition at Tokyo 2020, and the UIPM reported earlier this month that it had received 61 proposals to replace it.

However, critics including Pentathlon United have lambasted the replacement process, accusing the UIPM of a lack of transparency and failing "to acknowledge the athletes' voices".

UIPM President Klaus Schormann chairs the Fifth Discipline Working Group.

Modern pentathlon has been left off the initial programme for Los Angeles 2028, and International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach has warned that the proposal for riding's replacement and the overall competition format must be finalised before it can be included.