Abdelmaksoud and Micheli top women's semis at Pentathlon World Champs

Elena Micheli, left, was the top points scorer in women's semi-final B at the Modern Pentathlon World Championships ©Getty Images

Salma Abdelmaksoud and Elena Micheli topped the women’s semi-finals at the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) Pentathlon World Championships in Bath in England.

Egyptian Abdelmaksoud was given top spot in women’s semi-final A, finishing on a leading 1,110 points alongside double individual European medallist Michelle Gulyás of Hungary, Britain’s Jessica Varley and European Games gold medallist Alice Sotero of Italy.

In semi-final B, reigning world champion Elena Micheli of Italy was the top performer with a top score of 1,130 points.

Mariana Arceo of Mexico placed second in the semi-final with 1,129, with Sunwoo Kim of South Korea in third place in 1,126.

WORLD RECORD 💥
Blanka Bauer 🇭🇺 smashed a new World Record by 10 seconds in Semi-finals yesterday with a time of 10:38:08 in Laser Run 🏃‍♀️🔫
Previous WR holder - Blanka Guzi 🇭🇺 with a time of 10:48.90 pic.twitter.com/WnysYYg9d1
— UIPM - World Pentathlon (@WorldPentathlon) August 26, 2023

Italian Alessandra Frezza will start the final with a ten point overall lead, after an impressive performance in the fencing ranking round where she scored 24 victories from 35 bouts.

Hungarian Blanka Bauer finished fifth in semi-final B, with her performance notable for her winning time in the laser run discipline - a world record of 10min 38.08sec.

Rio 2016 individual silver medallist Élodie Clouvel of France is a notable absentee for the women’s final, after failing to qualify out of semi-final A at the University of Bath.

Eighteen athletes are due to feature in the women’s final, scheduled for Sunday (August 27), with up to three athletes set to receive places at the Paris 2024 Olympics.