Filipino pole vaulter EJ Obiena only broke brand new national list (again): The guy conversations Tokyo Olympics, Mondo Duplantis, and you can feeling the latest like on the Philippines within our private speak.
EJ Obiena are cheerful when he arises on the videocall. “Disappointed, was just undertaking my personal Covid decide to try,” he says, “it’s negative, therefore which is great.”
It is the most recent great from inside the a very good blast of an excellent information getting EJ whoever incredible indoor season has given solution to an amazing outdoor 12 months on Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games just months out.
Obiena have many times broken federal information and skyrocketed themselves on the top of podium over community champion Sam Kendricks and Olympic gold medallist Thiago Braz.
On Obiena set a different sort of Filipino record of 5.85m, profitable the newest Diving and Fly battle from inside the Mossingen, Germany, that mark surpassed his very own number of 5.81 that he set in in Chiari, Italy – a dot one to made your the initial Filipino so you’re able to be eligible for Tokyo 2020.
Exclusive! EJ Obiena kits landscapes into the Philippines’ very first actually ever Olympic silver: “That is the objective”
The new Olympic postponement gave Obiena a year to operate much harder and you will go higher and today he is hiking continuously to your wonders 6m draw, putting themselves on the reckoning toward podium from the rescheduled during the summer from 2021.
It pole vaulter ‘s the pleasure away from Filipino track and field that’s inside undoubtedly about their objective from the Tokyo Games:
“Victory new gold, that’s all kid. That’s an extremely tough goal to attain, besГ¶ka denna webbplats but that’s the target. That’s why I’m undertaking this, not to score second rather than to get third. to help you earn it.” – EJ Obiena
Will be Obiena do it he’d end up being the very first previously Filipino so you can profit an enthusiastic Olympic gold medal, forever composing his name to your Olympic lore regarding a country excited about athletics.
Read on for this private interviews towards the Philippine eagle, of his Olympic is designed to the fresh new Filipino food he misses (Particularly fresh coconut h2o, mangoes and you will Jollibbee!), how Covid nearly generated your surrender and you can go homeward, and his awesome 75-year-old advisor Vitaly Petrov whom confident your to save supposed.
We and additionally discover how he is in charge of his psychological state far from home, the fresh new family members they are produced, his spouse having and a runner, and the daunting help the guy feels off Filipinos everywhere.
How high can EJ Obiena wade?
5.62m (5th) at Karlsruhe World Interior Concert tour, 5.80m (1st) at ISTAF Berlin, 5.68m (1st) into the Dortmund, 5.60m (5th) in the WA interior Tour Silver inside the Lievin, 5.86m (2nd) at Orlen Cup inside Lodz, 5.80m (3rd) during the Copernicus Cup, Torun.
Now he’s got his sights seriously interested in the brand new Far eastern checklist regarding 5.93, however for EJ it’s just not exactly about the fresh numbers.
“Therefore i fully grasp this top objective level which i want to go but meanwhile not every race gift suggestions the brand new window of opportunity for one to create one to pub, you understand. When it comes to competition, We focus more about the fresh new bar which is lay right now.
“Starting battle, when you consider this new checklist and you will someone leaps more than you to definitely number, you are essentially such as for instance, oh s. I need to jump greater than that?
“Thus i believe the best variety of therapy starting race merely that we need to be he just who jumps higher than the remainder job. We focus on winning the fresh suits.”
His outside season first started remarkably when he cleared 5.80 so you can better the latest podium inside June, he then cleaned that Olympic important once again at the 2021 FBK Online game regarding Netherlands, in which the guy stepped-up towards podium about only Mondo, exactly who removed six.10m.