EJ Obiena breaks PH record in pole vaulting for second time

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Tokyo Olympics bound pole vaulter EJ Obiena made history once again after surpassing his own record in the recently concluded Irena Szwewinska Memorial/Bydgoszcz Cup in Poland.

Obiena bested his previous record of 5.85 meters when he was in Germany with his 5.87 meters score in Poland.

Obiena’s new career milestone helped him notch the silver medal in the tournament behind Chris Nilsen of the United States who captured the 5.92-meter mark.

As part of Obiena’s training with weeks to go before the Olympics will kick-off, the Filipino athlete weathered the storm and competed with the world’s best pole vaulters.

Just days before the stint in Poland, Obiena was able to share the gold medal with 2016 Olympic champion Thiago Braz.

Obiena and Braz ended up in a tie during the 2021 Stabhochsprung Manner athletic meet in Leverkusen, Germany and became one of his most memorable achievements this year.

Despite a stellar showing in the list of tournaments he joined this year, Obiena said that the job is still not done, adding that the biggest prize still lies in Tokyo.