Shooting is with any 4.5mm (.177") calibre compressed air or CO₂ pistol fired at a standing target from a distance of 10metres.  Competitors have either 10 or 20 shots, depending on the competition and their age.  The time allowed for each shot is 40 seconds.  Younger competitors may have a loader and use two hands to hold the pistol.

There are strict safety rules which must be observed at all competitions involving the shooting discipline and competitors should make themselves familiar with the rules, which are available from HQ. 

For 10 shot competitions 72 target points equate to 1000 modern pentathlon points, with each target point above or below this target being worth 12 pentathlon points.  For 20 shot competitions, 172 target points equate to 1000 modern pentathlon points, with each target point above or below this target being worth 12 pentathlon points.

The fencing discipline of Modern Pentathlon is based on all competitors in a class fencing all others in a one hit contest.  Depending on the numbers of competitors this may be increased to two hits. The weapon is the electric epée in either size 1 or size 2. Size 2 is used by junior athletes only. The "electric" epée is electrically monitored by a system that detects "hits" by the operation of a tip switch in the epée blade.

A competitor who wins 70% of the total bouts fought gains 1000 pentathlon points.  The value of each bout won or lost depends on the total number of bouts being fought.  This value is set out in the rules, but the following table gives two examples;

The riding discipline of Modern Pentathlon is intended to be a test of horsemanship.  Competitors must complete a riding course of 350 - 450 metres comprising 12 obstacles (including a double and a treble).  The height of the fences depends on the age of the competitors and local competitions may vary the number of obstacles.  Competitors have to ride a horse which is unknown to them and they draw lots to discover which horse they will ride.  They then have twenty minutes to 'warm up' during which time they may have 5 practice jumps in the warm up arena.

1200 pentathlon points are awarded for a clear round completed within the target time.  Penalty points are imposed for exceeding this time and for jumping errors.  These may arise from, for example, from refusals, knock downs or a fall.

The run can be completed on any type of surface and may be one or more laps.  The course should be clearly marked with flags and the maximum climb of the course should be 50m.

Starts are usually mass starts although for Pentathlon competitions a handicapped start may be used.  Here, the competitor in the lead after four events starts the run first.  All other competitors' start times are calculated based on the number of points they trail the leader after four events and the points per second allowed for their age and distance.