Philippine sports in 2022: EJ Obiena overcomes controversy, soars to new heights
MANILA, Philippines – There was much adversity to begin 2022 for World No. 5 pole vaulter EJ Obiena, as he bore the burden of what was then an unresolved rift between him and the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA).
In January, Obiena had been unceremoniously dropped from the national team following allegations of embezzlement of funds that PATAFA had given him for his Ukranian coach Vitaly Petrov.
Obiena had also undergone surgery on his knee, which sidelined him for the first few competitions of the indoor pole vault season.
But the struggles proved to be only temporary as the 27-year-old resolved those issues one by one to make room for a tremendous year — not only for himself, but for the rest of the Philippine athletics community.
First, Obiena was able to quickly recover from surgery and was already in competition by February.
By the Orlen Cup that month, he was back to winning gold medals for the country.
Then in May, though his participation had been in peril still due to his issue with PATAFA, Obiena was able to successfully defend his gold medal in the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.
There, Obiena jumped a new SEA Games record of 5.46m.
But his greatest glory of the year came in July at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, where he became the first-ever Filipino to clinch a medal in worlds.
Obiena soared to a new personal best of 5.94m to claim bronze in the final. In the process, he also set new Asian and national records — a performance that came just weeks since recovering from COVID-19.
Days after, his victory was sweetened when he was cleared by the Commission on Audit of PATAFA's allegations of the mishandling of funds.
All seemed to have worked out for Obiena, who was also able to enjoy some rest and relaxation in the Philippines as he came home for the first time in three years later on in 2022.
As he received accolades left and right for his achievement in worlds, Obiena was also able to share his victory with family and friends in the Philippines.
Though already achieving much in his career, Obiena remains hungry as he targets a 6.00m clearance sooner rather than later in his next couple of competitions.
Obiena has currently been in camp for the past couple of months for the upcoming 2023 indoor and outdoor seasons.
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