EJ Obiena breaks own PH record again after second-place finish in Poland

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

 

The streak of achievements continues for Tokyo-bound pole vaulter EJ Obiena.

After shattering his own PH pole vaulting record of 5.80 meters when he won the gold medal in the Berlin Meet, the Filipino went up higher and set a new record of 5.86 meters in a silver medal finish in the Orlen Cup in Lodz, Poland.

Former pole vaulting world champion Sam Kendricks from the US bagged the gold medal and got the same score as Obiena but completed it on his very first try.

“It’s such a great confidence boosting and momentum generating feat. EJ and his coach, Vitaly Petrov, have been trying new things and EJ has adjusted exceedingly well to the techniques and new equipment,” said Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association president Philip Ella Juico.

Obiena and coach Petrov set up their training camp in Italy last year and revealed that improvement has been evident through the span of their intensive training program.

Under the helm of coach Petrov, Obiena is currently on a streak of collecting world medals from bronze to gold with his preparation completing in time for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

“I can see EJ improving some more in the next few months. Looking forward, EJ and his team are mindful of the potential for injury and will adjust their regimen accordingly. He’ll most likely break the Philippine indoor record again before the season is over,” Juico added.