A pub quiz question if ever I heard one: what five sports make up the modern pentathlon?

This was thrown to the floor of the eurosport.yahoo.co.uk office and we had some wacky responses, which ranged from the ridiculous (cricket) to the absurd (rugby) before the five were finally named (the office American was really struggling).

The sports in question by the way are: epee fencing, pistol shooting, swimming (200m freestyle), show jumping (a course on a randomly selected horse) and cross-country.

Pity the person who had to design the Olympic logo for the event, but all things considered, I think they did a pretty good job - even if one of our team suggested it looked like a drunken cowboy (see picture).

The sport was invented by modern Olympic founder Baron Pierre de Coubertin in homage to the ancient pentathlon, which was one of the highlights of the ancient Games.

The modern incarnation of the sport is supposed to simulate the experience of a 19th century cavalry soldier behind enemy lines: riding an unfamiliar horse, fighting with a pistol and a sword, swimming, and running.

If you want to witness this truly unique sporting event you should get down to Millfield School in Somerset, where the third World Cup event of the season is taking place. It runs from March 27-30 and is free to watch.

In the women's competition you will be able to see three British athletes who could potentially make their mark in Beijing.

One of them, Georgina Harland, has already tasted Olympic glory, having won bronze in Athens, but she is also playing catch-up to make the British team.

Harland was forced onto the sidelines last season after being diagnosed with post-viral fatigue and has fallen behind in the race to earn one of two Olympic spots available to British athletes.

The two currently in pole-position are Katy Livingstone and Heather Fell, both of whom have both already reached the Olympic qualification standard.

For Harland to claim a spot, she is going to have to finish ahead of her British rivals and win a medal at the World Championships in Hungary in May.

It is Livingstone, however, who looks to hold the best medal hope for Britain, with her stock at an all-time high after winning the first World Cup event of the season in Egypt.

She also had some good results last year, having won silver at the World Cup event in Moscow, while she also placed sixth place at the European Championship in Latvia, the top-eight finish she needed to be considered for the Olympics.

At the same event, Fell picked up the silver medal, and while her results have not been quite as consistent as Livingstone, she has shown in the past an ability to produce big victories, never more so than when she won the World Junior Championship in 2003.

With the likes of Lindsey Weedon and Mhairi Spence also coming up through the ranks the future looks bright for Britain in the modern pentathlon.

Britain has an outstanding record in the women's competitions at the Olympics, winning three of the six medals available since the sport for women made its Olympic debut at Sydney 2000.

Do not rule out another podium finish from one of the British women this year either.

Seán Fay / Eurosport