Filipino pole-vaulter EJ Obiena only bankrupt the brand new national record (again): He conversations Tokyo Olympics, Mondo Duplantis, and feeling the fresh love regarding Philippines inside our exclusive chat.
EJ Obiena try cheerful when he pops up to your videocall. “Disappointed, was just undertaking my personal Covid try,” according to him, “it’s negative, very that’s great news.”
Simple fact is that most recent good news in a strong blast of a great development for EJ whose amazing interior 12 months has given answer to an amazing outdoor season on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Game simply months out.
Obiena features several times busted federal facts and you can skyrocketed themselves for the the upper podium more business winner Sam Kendricks and Olympic gold medallist Thiago Braz.
For the Obiena place a different sort of Filipino checklist of five.85m, successful new Dive and you will Travel competition inside Mossingen, Germany, you to mark surpassed his own list of 5.81 which he invest during the Chiari, Italy – a mark one generated your the original Filipino to be eligible for Tokyo 2020.
Personal! EJ Obiena kits places with the Philippines’ very first previously Olympic silver: “That’s the objective”
The Olympic postponement has given Obiena per year to get results much harder and you can increase and now he or she is hiking continuously into magic 6m draw, putting himself from the reckoning on podium during the rescheduled in the summertime regarding 2021.
This pole-vaulter is the pleasure off Filipino track-and-field which is from inside the definitely regarding their purpose at Tokyo Games:
“Victory the latest gold, that’s it kid. That is a very difficult mission to attain, but that’s the target. This is exactly why I’m carrying out all of this, not to get second and never to acquire third. to help you profit they.” – EJ Obiena
Would be to Obiena take action he’d become the basic ever before Filipino to earn an enthusiastic Olympic gold medal, forever creating his term to the Olympic lore out-of a country excited about sport.
Read on because of it personal interview with the Philippine eagle, of their Olympic is designed to the latest Filipino eating the guy misses (Like fresh coconut drinking water, mangoes and you will Jollibbee!), how Covid almost produced him surrender and you will go homeward, and his awesome 75-year-old mentor Vitaly Petrov exactly who confident your to keep supposed.
We in addition to discover how the guy looks after their psychological state away from your home, new family he could be generated, his partner that together with a runner, in addition to daunting support the guy feels regarding Filipinos all over.
How large can EJ Obiena go?
5.62m (5th) at Karlsruhe World Interior Trip, 5.80m (1st) during the ISTAF Berlin, 5.68m (1st) into the Dortmund, 5.60m (5th) during the WA interior Concert tour Silver in Lievin, 5.86m (2nd) from the Orlen Glass inside the Lodz, 5.80m (3rd) during the Copernicus Cup, Torun.
Today he’s got their sights set on the latest Far eastern list away from 5.93, but also for EJ it’s just not about the brand new quantity.
“And so i get this https://kissbrides.com/sv/indiska-brudar/ height mission peak that i should reach however, at the same time not every competition merchandise the newest opportunity for that make you to definitely club, you are aware. In terms of competition, We appeal more about the new pub that is set immediately.
“Starting race, considering the fresh new number and you will somebody leaps more that checklist, you happen to be basically for example, oh s. I want to dive higher than that?
“Thus i consider the best particular therapy entering race simply that i have to be the guy just who leaps higher than all of those other career. We work on successful the brand new meets.”
Their outside season first started remarkably as he removed 5.80 to help you ideal this new podium in the June, he then cleaned one to Olympic simple again in the 2021 FBK Games from the Netherlands, in which he stepped-up to the podium trailing merely Mondo, who removed six.10m.