EJ Obiena continued his strong form this season, clearing 5.82 meters to claim first place at ISTAF 2026 at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on Monday morning (Manila time).
Obiena was not only aiming for the victory but also looking to clear 5.97 meters to qualify for the World Athletics Ultimate Championships in Budapest on September 11-13, a lucrative event reserved for the world’s top eight pole vaulters.
Although he fell short of the qualifying mark, Obiena still did enough to rule the competition in Berlin.
Joining him on the podium were 2025 European Athletics U20 bronze medalist Ylio Philtjens of Belgium and 2023 European U23 silver medalist Robin Emig of France.
Philtjens finished second after clearing 5.72 meters, edging Emig on countback after needing fewer attempts to reach the height.
Obiena dominated a field that featured world No. 5 Sam Kendricks and No. 11 KC Lightfoot of the United States, No. 14 Bo Kanda Lita Baehre of Germany, and No. 15 Seifeldin Abdelsalam of Qatar.
The victory marked Obiena’s ninth gold medal and 13th podium finish of the season.
Now training in Greece under Polish coach Marcin Szczepanski, Obiena is building toward his next major target: defending his pole vault title at the Asian Games this September.
