Pillow fights reach the professional level

On Jan. 29, Florida held its first pillow wrestling championship, with 16 men and eight women competing for two titles. Each winner received a title belt and $5,000.

Pillow fights could become a substitute for horseback riding as one of the disciplines of the modern pentathlon.

Professional pillow fights, which are held in Florida, USA, involve mostly amateur boxers and mixed martial arts fighters. One bout lasts three rounds.

The UIPM Executive Committee had previously officially confirmed that it had decided to remove riding from the pentathlon program amid a scandal of mistreatment of a female athlete with a horse at the Tokyo Olympics.