By MARK REY MONTEJO
Even without the luxury of having a full meal and good sleep, two-time Olympic pole vaulter EJ Obiena delivered in what he called his “toughest back-to-back” after winning a bronze at the INIT Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe in Germany over the weekend.
Still the in-flight meal and a nap fueled Obiena to another podium finish after clearing 5.70 meters just a day after his gold-medal haul in Tianjin, China.
“Running on airplane food and a couple hours of shut eye. Thankful and blessed to walk away with the bronze here @indoormeetingkarlsruhe,” said Obiena.
“Definitely the toughest back to back I have ever done and hopefully would ever do,” he added.
The world No. 11 was beaten by Norwegian Sondre Guttormsen (5.84m) and American Cole Walsh (5.78m), who copped the gold and silver medals, respectively,
The country’s multi-medalist vaulter also expressed his gratitude to the organizers of the competition.
“Thank you so much @indoormeetingkarlsruhe for the smooth transfer from the airport to the hotel. Got the much needed nappy minutes,” Obiena concluded.
A day before his bronze win in Germany, the Tondo, Manila native secured his first-ever gold in the 12th Asian Indoor Athletics Championships on Chinese soil.
That triumph became a very special one as it was the one he missed even though he ruled several continental and regional tournaments, namely the Southeast Asian Games and the Asian Games.
Obiena continues his European journey as he also participates in two meets set in France and Poland later this month.
