Obiena gears up for Olympic bid

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino Olympics aspirant EJ Obiena steps up on his high-performance training under renowned pole vault coach Vitaly Petrov as he braces for four to six tournaments in the next three months.

Obiena, 20, spent the holidays at the Olympic Center in Spala, Poland, where he’ll be staying until Jan. 19. Accompanied by his father-coach Emerson, the young Obiena is honing his skills under the guidance of Petrov, whose previous pupils included pole vault greats Sergey Bubka and Yelena Isinbayeva.

“EJ’s performance has progressed remarkably under the guidance of Petrov,” said athletics association president Philip Ella Juico.

Obiena initially trained under Petrov at the IAAF Pole Vault Training Center in Formia, Italy. But for his winter training, Obiena moved to Poland.

“Coach Petrov decided to train EJ in the Spala indoor facility since the runway in Formia is not long enough for EJ to do his long approach run as he continues to grow and gain needed weight. In fact the pole that EJ uses now, as befits his height and weight and progression, is heavier and stiffer,” said Juico.

Prior to being coached by Petrov, Obiena was good for 5.0 meters. Under Petrov, the University of Santo Tomas ace improved to 5.25 meters, which netted him a silver in the 28th Southeast Asian Games.

“He has been kept active by the PATAFA weekly relays sponsored by the Philippine Sports Commission. His best performance to date which is the Philippine record established during the Weekly Relays in Sept. 2015, is 5.45 meters,” said Juico.

Obiena will compete in the seventh Asian Indoor Athletics Championships at the ultra-modern Aspire Dome in Doha, Qatar slated Feb. 19-21.

“EJ is now in transition to specific preparation for the seventh Asian Indoor Athletics Championships. This competition will be the first of four to six tough competitions that EJ needs to join from January to March,” said Juico.