EJ Obiena recaptures stride, nabs gold medal in Los Angeles

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

EJ Obiena regained his footing on the international stage after clinching the gold medal during the Los Angeles Grand Prix on May 19, 2024, in the United States.

After an unexpected dismal showing in Glasgow, Scotland, two months ago when he only finished ninth, Obiena bounced back big time and added another golden trophy to his prestigious collection.

Obiena was in the zone in Los Angeles after topping the score sheet with a title-clinching score of 5.80 meters against seven other competitors from different nations.

It was only Obiena who managed to reach the height of 5.80-m in the competition, capping off his impressive routine with another convincing finish.

Placing second in Los Angeles were KC Lightfoot and Simen Guttorsmen who shared the same score of 5.70 meters.

Obiena kicked off his 2024 playing calendar with a great start after resetting the Asian indoor record at the ISTAF Indoor Berlin tournament on February 24, 2024, in Germany.

Obiena capped off his gold medal finish with a record-breaking 5.93-meter height completion during the nine-man world competition.

The 28-year-old superstar surpassed the previous Asian indoor record of 5.92 meters set by Igor Potapovich of Kazakhstan way back in 1998.

Aside from breaking Potapovich’s record, Obiena also reset his personal indoor best score of 5.91 meters which he did during the Perch Elite Tour in Rouen, France, two years ago.