Prince Albert, Honorary President of the UIPM, was joined by Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) President Francesco Ricci Bitti and IOC honorary member Habu Gumel at the University of Bath in England.

Their visit comes at a critical time for the UIPM which is seeking to retain modern pentathlon’s Olympic status after it was left off the initial list for Los Angeles 2028.

A decision on the sports programme for LA 2028 is expected to be made at the IOC Session, due to be held in Mumbai in October.

UIPM President Klaus Schormann revealed that he had held talks with Ricci Bitti over the inclusion of obstacle in modern pentathlon, claiming that it had been "welcomed by all sides".

Obstacle will become the sport’s fifth discipline, replacing riding which will be axed after Paris 2024 following the scandal at Tokyo 2020 that prompted widespread criticism and led to German coach Kim Raisner being sent home in disgrace for punching a horse that refused to jump.

Paris 2024 is set to see a new 90-minute format of modern pentathlon which was used at the UIPM Pentathlon World Championships in Bath.

Schormann gave Prince Albert a tour of the venue at the University of Bath as the competition came to a conclusion.

Prince Albert claimed he was in favour of the changes that had been made to the sport, insisting the "future is very bright".

"It feels great to be back at the UIPM Pentathlon World Championships, especially here at the University of Bath at this incredible sports complex," said Prince Albert.

"It’s wonderful to see the enthusiasm and the very knowledgeable crowd here, and it’s great to see the athletes go all out to try to secure a place at next year’s Olympic Games Paris 2024.

"It should be an incredible setting for modern pentathlon at the Palace de Versailles.

"Quite unique, and I think it will be a great showcase for our sport of modern pentathlon but also for the values it carries.

"And beyond that, I think the future is very bright for modern pentathlon.

"There are changes that are being brought in that makes it, I think, a very exciting prospect.

"I’m absolutely sure.

"I have tried to be as supportive as possible about these changes and I really think we are facing a very exciting future, a very exciting way forward."

Schormann described the visit of Prince Albert was a "big highlight"

"We could see how much he enjoyed the competition and the efforts of the athletes," he said.

"We also welcomed the President of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations, Francesco Ricci Bitti, with whom we had many discussions about the integration of obstacle as a new discipline in modern pentathlon – and this has been welcomed by all sides."

The final day of competition saw Salma Abdelmaksoud and Mohanad Shaban combine to win Egypt gold in the mixed relay after leading from start to finish.

South Korea's Kim Sun-woo and Jun Woong-tae claimed second, with Lucie Hlavackova and Marek Grycz of Czech Republic seeing off the challenge of Turkey’s İlke Özyüksel and Buğra Ünal to clinch the bronze medal.

Schormann hailed the staging of the event in Bath which also hosted the Laser Run World Championships and spoke of the prospect of the mixed relay event featuring at the Olympics.

"All of our international guests and sponsors who came here have enjoyed the atmosphere and the glory of this World Championships," he said.

"It was great for the organising nation to have the men’s Individual gold medallist on top of the podium, among other medals won by Great Britain.

"Finally today, we had 21 nations in the mixed relay, which is another record, and it shows the popularity of this event and we are still discussing if it could be included in the Olympic Games in future, based on the direction we are going."