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Filipino legend EJ Obiena runs at least 5.80 meters for the first time in almost a year after failing to reach the podium at Fly Athens in Greece.
MANILA, Philippines – EJ Obiena may have missed the podium, but he took a step in the right direction as he strives to return to form.
Obiena cleared 5.81m for his highest clearance of the year to finish fourth at the Fly Athens in Greece on Sunday, July 5 (Monday, July 6, Manila time).
The match was the first time the Filipino star cleared the 5.80m distance in almost a year, or since he surpassed the home reigning height. Athlete Ayala World Pole Vault Challenge in September.
“I haven’t seen you, 5.80m bar, for a while…. I miss you,” Obiena wrote with a heart emoji on his social media accounts.
Clean from winning back-to-back gold medals in Poland and Austria, Obiena missed out on a third straight finish when he lost bronze in a home draw and met organizer Emmanouil Karalis, the current world No. 2, through a back-to-back.
While the pair cleared 5.81m in their first outing, Karalis needed just one attempt to jump 5.61m, which took Obiena two attempts.
Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Chris Nilsen of the United States led the field of 10 with a 5.91m, beating France’s Thibaut Collet to take the gold medal in the backstroke.
Obiena, the only member from Asia in the exclusive six-meter club and currently ranked 14th in the world, has made a big step following a three-month layoff.
After opening the outdoor season with an eighth-place finish at the Doha Meet in Qatar that saw him set a record of 5.42m, Obiena has steadily improved his standards, clearing 5.64m for fourth at the FBK Games in the Netherlands, 5.72m for first at the Czeslaw Cybulski Memorial in Poland, and 7m in Austria at the Open 5.
Before Fly Athens, Obiena set her previous best of 5.78m when she dominated the ISTAF Indoor in Germany in March. – Rappler.com
