EJ Obiena bounced back once more and ended with 5.80 meters en route to a share of second place in the pole vault event of the 2021 Kamila Skolimowska Memorial meet – the third-to-the-last leg of this year’s World Continental Gold Tour – early Sunday (Manila time) at the Silesian Stadium in Chorzow, Poland.
The 25-year-old earlier set his then-personal best of 5.86 meters, also in the same series and in the same country. At the time, he competed for the Irena Szewinska Memorial in Bydgoszcz. And he could have rewritten history once more – to tie the Asian record at that – only his two attempts at 5.92 went begging.
Nonetheless, Obiena’s clearance of 5.80 on his second attempt gave him a share of second place, along with USA’s KC Lightfoot.
It was Christopher Nilsen, also from the USA, who took the title after he emerged. He was the only pole vaulter to clear 5.86 meters. Lightfoot failed on his three chances at the said height, while Obiena skipped it after missing on his first attempt.
The Filipino standout earlier took care of 5.40 and 5.60 meters on just one try each, before needing two attempts at 5.70. He also elected to skip the intermediate height of 5.50, in addition to his further attempts at 5.86.
Obiena hopes to bring this momentum as he competes in the final leg of the 2021 Wanda Diamond League in Zurich, Switzerland on September 8-9.
