One hundred years after a Filipino athlete first set foot on the Olympic stage in 1924 – athletics standout David Nepomuceno – there will surely be another athlete to represent the country in the next year’s edition, coincidentally in Paris as well.
Another athletics stalwart, EJ Obiena, became the first Filipino athlete to qualify for the 2024 Games.
He matched the qualification standard of 5.82 meters in the Bauhaus-Galan meet of the 2023 Wanda Diamond League leg on Monday morning (Manila time) at the Stockholm Olympic Stadium in Sweden.
This milestone came after the 27-year-old star secured his second consecutive appearance in the Games with a second-time clearance at the said height.
Obiena eventually finished second after missing thrice on 5.95 meters, behind Sweden’s Armand Duplantis. He secured seven more points for qualification to the Diamond League final later in Eugene, Oregon, United States.
The Filipino standout now has 13 points after two legs.
Earlier, Obiena finished with a best of 5.90 meters when he won the bronze in the Ostrava Golden Spike just this past Wednesday. He placed behind Duplantis of Sweden (6.12 meters) and Kurtis Marschall of Australia (5.90 meters on count-back).
