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EJ Obiena plans to bring world-class pole vault meet to Manila
After falling short of a podium finish in the 2024 Paris Olympics, Ernest John “EJ” Obiena is now looking to inspire future generations by putting a spotlight on his sport when he comes home to the Philippines.
Obiena aims to stage a pole vault competition at the Ayala Triangle Gardens on September 20, featuring some of the competitors from the Paris Games.
Fresh from a fourth-place finish in the Olympics, Obiena said he can now dedicate more time planning the event, which is already sanctioned by the World Athletics.
PHOTO COURTESY: INQUIRER.NET
“It is an official competition. It is sanctioned. We have a European consultant to make sure that everything is up to standard. The surface is going to be the same with what we used here in the Paris and Tokyo Olympics,” said Obiena in an online Zoom press conference on Wednesday, August 7.
“Hopefully, you guys will have a world-class competition in the Philippines,” he added.
Obiena said he plans to invite the pole vaulters he went against in the Olympic final, including Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis, China’s Huang Bokai, and Germany’s Oleg Zernikel.
The plan to bring a pole vault competition started as far as two years ago with Philippine Committee president Abraham Tolentino offering Tagaytay City as one of the venues.
It appears Makati City will be the likely site of the meet, which will give Filipinos a rare glimpse of an international pole vault event.
Obiena last competed in the Philippines when the country hosted the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, winning the first of his three straight titles in the biennial showpiece.
