By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
EJ Obiena is having a terrific opening campaign after clinching the silver medal in the ISTAF Indoor Meet last February 11, 2023, held in Berlin, Germany.
The podium finish extended his winning streak after nabbing three gold medals at the Orlen Cup, Perche en Or tournament, Orlen Copernicus Cup, and a bronze medal result during the Monde Classic held in Sweden.
Obiena once again impressed in the indoor tournament as he tallied a final score of 5.82 meters and bested the other top bets of the world.
World no. 1 pole vaulter and reigning world champion Armand Duplantis of Sweden got the better of Obiena in the final round and recorded 6.06 meters for the gold medal.
It was a tough road for Obiena during the competition after burning two attempts in the 5.60-meter height before deciding to jump to 5.82 meters.
The 27-year-old Filipino superstar went head-to-head against Kurtis Marshall of Australia but managed to overtake him after needing only one try in the 5.82-meter height.
Marshall on the other hand needed two attempts to get past 5.82 meters which relegated him to a bronze medal finish.
Obiena wasn’t done after leaping over the 5.82-meter height and went for 5.91 meters to equalize his highest score of the season but the Pinoy failed in two tries.
After the hectic tournament schedule in the first half of his competing calendar, Obiena will be looking to take some rest before heading back to his February contests.
