FORMER Thomasian pole vaulter EJ Obiena is entering the 2024 Paris Olympics with a more “mature” approach to competition, according to his father, as he prepares to face other elite jumpers and redeem himself from his No. 11 finish in his previous Olympic stint.
In Paris, Obiena, who is the No. 2-ranked pole vaulter according to the latest World Athletics rankings, will compete against top-ranked Armand Duplantis of Sweden, Sam Kendricks (No. 3) and Christopher Nielsen (No. 4) of the USA, Piotr Lisek (No. 11) from Poland, and Sondre Guttormsen (No. 35) from Norway, all of whom have leaped 6 meters.
Despite the stiff competition, Emerson Obiena, EJ’s father, remains optimistic that his son’s growth since the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will help boost his chances of winning his redemption bid.
“Itong susunod na Olympics, mas tumaas ang standard,” Emerson told the Varsitarian. “Kung titingnan natin, merong anim na 6-meter jumpers na maglalaro sa Olympics–dati isa lang o dalawa. Ganoon na kataas ang standard ngayon and mas nag-mature naman si EJ sa kaniyang pamamaraan ng pag-compete.”
Obiena is no stranger to the elite 6-meter club. He surpassed the height twice in the past year: first in a Norway tilt last June, in which he set the Asian record, and again two months later in a competition in Hungary.
However, Obiena will be facing Duplantis, who has also raised the bar in the men’s pole vault scene by setting a new world record after clearing 6.24 meters in April.
For EJ to prevail, Emerson said his son would need to bring out the best in him, both physically and mentally.
“He has to do his best and give his 100 percent. Iyon lang ang puwede nating gawin and kung ano man ‘yong kalalabasan ng laro na ‘yon, as long as he knew he did what he had to do, ganoon talaga ‘yon e—competition is a competition,” he said.
“Lahat ‘yan, nag-e-aim sa pinakakaya nila and doon magkakaalaman sa araw mismo ng laro kung sino ‘yong mas sharp, kung sino mas ready.”
Tough road to Paris
Despite bringing in with him a wiser competitive mindset, Obiena admitted that his preparations for Paris had not been perfect and he had suffered “physical problems” leading up to the Olympics.
“If you had asked me a year ago, how I would envision the ‘perfect’ Olympic preparation, well it certainly wouldn’t be what has transpired!” he wrote in a Facebook post on July 20. “Despite my best efforts at conditioning, fitness and discipline, I have been battling with various physical problems since April.”
Karen Tanchanco-Caballero, a deputy secretary general of the Philippine Olympic Committee, said that while there is no “perfect plan,” Obiena’s team, led by his longtime coach Vitaly Petrov, has a “good enough plan.”
“This is not their first Olympics…So, we are assured that with the leadership of Coach Petrov, talagang I can see clearly that EJ has completely trusted the strategy, the training plan, and the process,” she told the Varsitarian.
While the roads leading to Paris have been far from perfect for the Thomasian pole vault star, Tanchanco-Caballero said she trusts that Obiena’s competitive fire will prevail during the games.
“Iyon ang inassure ko kay EJ na, kahit na anong mangyari, we are behind the athletes all the way,” she said. “But of course EJ being EJ, ‘I’ve worked so hard for this. Gusto ko siyempre na maganda ang outcome.”
EJ will commence his bid for Olympic glory in the qualification round of the men’s pole vault event at Stade de France on Aug. 3 at 4:10 p.m. (Manila time). The final round is scheduled for Aug. 6 at 1 a.m. (Manila time), at the same venue.
