Filipino pole-vaulter EJ Obiena only broke the national record (again): He discussions Tokyo Olympics, Mondo Duplantis, and you will feeling the newest love from the Philippines inside our private chat.
EJ Obiena is smiling as he appears to your videocall. “Sorry, was just performing my personal Covid decide to try,” he states, “it’s negative, so that’s very good news.”
Simple fact is that latest great news inside a very good stream of a good news to own EJ whose unbelievable interior seasons has given solution to an amazing backyard season to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games only days away.
Obiena provides a couple of times busted national information and you may catapulted himself to your the upper podium over industry winner Sam Kendricks and you will Olympic silver medallist Thiago Braz.
To your Obiena set another Filipino checklist of five.85m, winning the brand new Dive and you may Travel battle in the Mossingen, Germany, you to mark surpassed their own list of 5.81 that he devote during the Chiari, Italy – a dot you to definitely generated your the initial Filipino so you can qualify for Tokyo 2020.
Exclusive! EJ Obiena establishes landscapes to the Philippines’ first ever before Olympic gold: “That is the goal”
The fresh Olympic postponement has given Obiena annually to work much harder and go higher and today he could be climbing steadily on the wonders 6m mark, getting themselves about reckoning on the podium in the rescheduled in the summertime from 2021.
That it pole vaulter is the pride out of Filipino track and field that is into the definitely throughout the their mission at Tokyo Games:
“Earn the newest silver, that’s it son. That’s a tremendously difficult mission to achieve, but that is the goal. That’s why I’m undertaking all of this, to not score second and not to obtain 3rd. to help you victory they.” – EJ Obiena
Should Obiena do so he would get to be the earliest ever before Filipino to win a keen Olympic silver medal, permanently writing their identity on Olympic lore regarding a nation passionate about recreation.
Read on for it exclusive interview with the Philippine eagle, off their Olympic is designed to new Filipino restaurants he misses (Particularly new coconut drinking water, mangoes and you will Jollibbee!), exactly how Covid nearly generated him throw in the towel and go home, with his 75-year-old mentor Vitaly Petrov which sure your to store going.
I also hear about exactly how he manages their psychological state far from home, brand new nearest and dearest he could be produced, his wife who has as well as an athlete, and the daunting help the guy feels of Filipinos all over.
Just how large is also EJ Obiena wade?
5.62m (5th) within Karlsruhe Industry Interior Trip, 5.80m (1st) during the ISTAF Berlin, 5 vackra ghanansk kvinnor.68m (1st) during the Dortmund, 5.60m (5th) at the WA indoor Tour Gold from inside the Lievin, 5.86m (2nd) within Orlen Mug inside the Lodz, 5.80m (3rd) at the Copernicus Mug, Torun.
Now he has his views intent on new Far eastern checklist from 5.93, but also for EJ it isn’t exactly about this new wide variety.
“Thus i fully grasp this level goal level which i need certainly to reach but at the same time not all battle gifts this new opportunity for you to definitely build one bar, you are sure that. When it comes to race, I attention much more about the new club that’s lay immediately.
“Going into competition, considering the new listing and someone leaps more than that checklist, you’re basically like, oh s. I want to jump higher than one to?
“And so i thought a knowledgeable types of psychology starting competition is that i have to be he which leaps higher than the remainder profession. We focus on successful the new match.”
His outdoor year first started remarkably when he cleared 5.80 so you can most readily useful the fresh podium into the June, he then eliminated you to definitely Olympic practical once again from the 2021 FBK Games regarding the Netherlands, in which he stepped-up on podium at the rear of merely Mondo, exactly who cleared 6.10m.
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