EJ Obiena working way back to form with year-best vault in Greece

MANILA, Philippines – EJ Obiena may have missed the podium, but he took a step in the right direction as he works his way back to form.

Obiena vaulted past 5.81 meters for his highest clearance of the year to finish fourth in the Fly Athens in Greece on Sunday, July 5 (Monday, July 6, Manila time).

The meet marked the first time the Filipino star cleared at least 5.80m in almost a year, or since he soared past the exact height to rule at home in the Atletang Ayala World Pole Vault Challenge in September.

“I have not seen you, 5.80m bar, in a while…. I have missed you,” Obiena wrote with a heart-eyed emoji on his social media accounts.

Fresh from winning back-to-back gold medals in Poland and Austria, Obiena missed out on a third straight podium finish as he lost the bronze to home bet and meet organizer Emmanouil Karalis, the current world No. 2, via countback. 

While the two both cleared 5.81m on their first go, Karalis needed just one try to hurdle 5.61m, which took Obiena two attempts. 

Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Chris Nilsen of the United States topped the 10-man field with 5.91m, edging France’s Thibaut Collet for the gold on countback.

Obiena, the only Asian member of the exclusive six-meter club and currently ranked 14th in the world, has made great strides following a three-month hiatus.

After opening the outdoor season with an eighth-place finish in the Doha Meeting in Qatar that saw him record 5.42m, Obiena has consistently improved his clearances, soaring past 5.64m for fourth in the FBK Games in the Netherlands, 5.72m for first in the Czeslaw Cybulski Memorial in Poland, and 5.75m for first in the Austrian Open. 

Before Fly Athens, Obiena set his previous year-best of 5.78m when he reigned in the ISTAF Indoor in Germany in March. – Rappler.com