Ernest John Obiena

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Uy and the surname or paternal family name is Obiena.

Ernest John Uy Obiena (born November 17, 1995^[4][5]), also known as EJ Obiena, is a Filipino pole vaulter. Before breaking the Asian Athletics Championships record, he held the Philippine national record in pole vaulting with a record of 5.55 meters which he accomplished on April 29, 2016, at the 78th Singapore Open Championships in Kallang, Singapore.^[6] He later broke the Asian Athletics Championships record with 5.71 meters on April 21, 2019, on its 23rd biennial meet at Doha, Qatar which earned him the coveted gold medal finish. He currently holds the National Record which he broke in the same event.

Ernest John Obiena

Obiena in 2022
Personal information
Full name	Ernest John Uy Obiena
Nickname(s)	EJ Obiena
Nationality	Filipino
Born	(1995-11-17) November 17, 1995 (age 27) Tondo, Manila, Philippines^[1]
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.9 m)^[2]
Sport
Country	Philippines
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	Pole vaulting
College team	University of Santo Tomas
Coached by	Emerson Obiena Vitaly Petrov (2014)
Achievements and titles
Highest world ranking	3
Personal best(s)	5.94m (2022, NR and AR^[3])
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Philippines Event 1st 2nd 3rd World Athletics Championships 0 0 1 Asian Athletics Championships 1 0 1 Universiade 1 0 0 Southeast Asian Games 2 1 0 Total 4 1 2 World Athletics Championships 2022 Eugene Pole vault Asian Athletics Championships 2019 Doha Pole vault 2017 Bhubaneswar Pole vault Universiade 2019 Naples Pole vault Southeast Asian Games 2021 Vietnam Pole vault 2019 Philippines Pole vault 2015 Singapore Pole vault

Obiena is currently ranked as the world's third-best active men's pole vaulter, as per the World Athletics.^[7]

Obiena is the first Filipino that has been given a scholarship from the International Athletic Association Federation (IAAF).^[1][8]

Early life and education

Obiena was born to track and field athletes, Emerson Obiena and Jeanette Uy^[2] on November 17, 1995, in Tondo, Manila.^[1][4] He is of part Chinese descent.^[9] Obiena attended Chiang Kai Shek College for his secondary education and later entered the University of Santo Tomas for his college studies.^[2]

Pole vault career

Early years

EJ Obiena first took up pole vaulting when he was eight years old but he initially focused on doing hurdles. His father, Emerson Obiena served as his coach until he was 18 years old.^[10] Obiena competed at the 100 and 400 meter hurdles event for his high school, Chiang Kai Shek College.^[2] Unable to qualify for regional meets, He decided to shift back to pole vaulting when he was in his last years in high school in a bid to secure a college scholarship.^[10]

At the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), he competed for the University of Santo Tomas.^[2]

National team

 

Obiena (right) at the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships.

In early 2014, Obiena was able to meet Ukrainian pole vaulter Sergey Bubka who was visiting the Philippines. He originally intended just to get an autograph from Bubka but he was able to learn of an opportunity to train in Italy.^[10] In the same year for three months, Obiena went to Italy to train under coach Vitaly Petrov in Formia who also previously coached Bubka.^[11] On July 20, 2014, at the PATAFA weekly relays held at the PhilSports Football and Athletics Stadium, Obiena broke the national record for pole vault by registering 5.01 meters. The previous record was 5.0 meters by Edward Lasquete at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. The junior national record was also broken, since Obiena at that time is 18 years old. The previous record was 4.31 set three years before.^[11]

He later broke his own record several times in 2014 alone (5.05, 5.05, 5.15, 5.20, 5.21). By the time Obiena became ineligible for the national junior record, the record was 5.21 which Obiena set himself.^{[citation needed]}

In the 2015 Southeast Asian Games, Obiena won a silver medal with a leap of 5.25 meters, then his personal record.^[12]

Obiena won a gold medal in the 2016 Philippine National Games Finals in Lingayen, Pangasinan after breaking a new personal record (5.47 meters), despite problems with his broken pole.

Obiena won gold in the men's pole vault event at the 2019 Summer Universiade^[13] setting a new national record of 5.76 meters. He secured a berth in the 2020 Summer Olympics by surpassing the qualifying standard by making a 5.81 meters finish in a tournament in Chiara, Italy on September 3, 2019. The finish was also a national record.^[14]

At the 2019 World Athletics Championships he failed to advance to the final round by finishing 15th out of 35 entrants through his 5.6 meters finish. He is aiming to surpass his own record targeting to leap 5.85 meters or further in training.^[15]

The COVID-19 pandemic caused the postponement of the Olympics and travel restrictions imposed by countries in response to the health crisis posed logistical issues to Obiena's preparations. For most of 2020, Obiena spent his time training in Formia, Italy and was unable to go back to the Philippines during the Christmas season. He trained under American conditioning coach James Michael Lafferty and Nutritionist Carol Lafferty; along with Brazilian Thiago Braz as his training partner.^[16] Competing in 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Obiena managed to advance to the final of the pole vault competition but failed make a podium finish.^[17]

Obiena set a then Asian record in pole vault when he lifted his then best vault all the way to 5.93 meters at the International Golden Roof Challenge in Innsbruck, Austria on September 12, 2021. He finished 1st in the tournament.^[18] This record was later broken on July 25, 2022, when Obiena lifted his best vault all the way to 5.94 meters at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon. He won a bronze medal, becoming the first Filipino to win a medal in the tournament.^[19]

Coaches

Obiena has trained under coach Vitaly Petrov since 2014. Obiena's coaching team includes his father, Emerson Obiena, mentor James Michael Lafferty, Physiotherapist Francesco Viscusi, Osteopath Antonio Guglietta, Nutrionist Carol Lafferty and Sport Psychologist Dr. Sheryll Casuga. ^[20]

Dispute with PATAFA

Main article: Ernest John Obiena–PATAFA dispute

In November 2021, the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) publicly escalated an accounting dispute involving late payments to Obiena's coach, Vitaly Petrov. Petrov later denied there was any payment issue with Obiena.^[21][22] Philippine Senators quickly came to Obiena's defense, calling unproven accusations "harassment" against an athlete considered a national treasure and passing a motion to recall the budget of the PSC. The Senators later approved the PSC budget with the condition that PATAFA will “rectify the grave injustice” done to Obiena's reputation. During congressional hearings, witnesses testified that PATAFA's payment system is broken.^{[23][24][25][26]}

After an investigation by its Ethics Committee, the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) declared PATAFA's president Philip Juico persona non grata for his role in the harassment of Obiena. The investigation of the POC's ethics committee concluded that Juico had harassed the athlete by making "malicious public accusations".^[27][28]

On March 30, 2022, the Philippine Sports Commission announced that both parties reached an agreement during a mediation process. Obiena will be endorsed by PATAFA in any future competitions.^[29]

Competition record

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
Representing the   Philippines
2013	Southeast Asian Games	Naypyidaw, Myanmar	4th	4.90 m
2015	Southeast Asian Games	Singapore	2nd	5.25 m
2016	Asian Indoor Championships	Doha, Qatar	4th	5.40 m
2017	Asian Championships	Bhubaneswar, India	3rd	5.50 m
2018	Asian Games	Jakarta, Indonesia	7th	5.30 m
2019	Asian Championships	Doha, Qatar	1st	5.71 m
	Southeast Asian Games	Philippines	1st	5.45 m
	Universiade	Naples, Italy	1st	5.76 m
	World Championships	Doha, Qatar	15th (q)	5.60 m
2020	Olympic Games	Tokyo, Japan	11th	5.70 m
2022	Southeast Asian Games	Vietnam	1st	5.46 m
	World Championships	Eugene, Oregon	3rd	5.94 m

See also

• List of Asian Athletics Championships records
• List of Filipino records in athletics

References

1. "Obiena breaks PH's 100-year gold-medal drought in Asian pole vault". The Manila Times. May 20, 2019.
2. Reyes, Marc Anthony (February 12, 2017). "Height of brilliance". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
3. "World Athletics Championships 2022" (PDF). Retrieved July 25, 2022.
4. "Ernest John OBIENA | Profile | World Athletics".
5. Giongco, Nick (February 23, 2016). . Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
6. "78th Singapore Open Championships 2016 Results". southeastasiansports.blogspot.de. April 29, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
7. Morales, Luisa (July 28, 2022). "EJ Obiena rises to 3rd spot in pole vault rankings after World Championships bronze". philstar.com. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
8. "Before each leap of faith, Tokyo 2020-bound EJ Obiena is calm under pressure".
9. Talao, Tito (July 29, 2021). "EJ Obiena looks to rise to the occasion in Tokyo". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
10. "How Sergey Bubka set EJ Obiena on pole vaulter's Olympic dream". GMA News. July 3, 2021. Retrieved July 3, 2021.
11. Villar, Joey (July 21, 2014). "Obiena breaks 22-year-old PHL pole vault record". The Philippine Star. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
12. Terrado, Reuben (January 4, 2016). "EJ Obiena set to complete pole vault training in Poland, looks to qualify for Rio through Doha tilt". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
13. Terrado, Reuben (July 13, 2019). "EJ Obiena captures gold medal in Summer Universiade in Italy". Retrieved July 14, 2019.
14. Malanum, Jean (September 4, 2019). "Pinoy pole vaulter Obiena earns 2020 Tokyo Olympics slot". Philippine News Agency. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
15. "Obiena hoping to improve his leap to 5.85 meters or more". Manila Standard. October 8, 2019. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
16. Pedralvez, Manolo (January 24, 2021). "Tokyo Olympics: Don't be surprised if vaulter Obiena wins medal, says trainer". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
17. Lozada, Bong (August 3, 2021). "EJ Obiena ends Olympic bid, crashes out of men's pole vault final". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
18. Dioquino, Delfin (September 12, 2021). "EJ Obiena breaks Asian record, bags gold in Austria". Rappler. Retrieved September 12, 2021.
19. Dioquino, Delfin (July 25, 2022). "EJ Obiena resets Asian record to claim historic bronze in World Athletics Championships". rappler.com. Retrieved August 1, 2022.
20. "EJ mom confident son has mental battle handled". inquirer.net. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
21. "Patafa orders Obiena to return financial assistance". Philippine Daily Inquirer. November 21, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
22. Yumol, David Tristan (November 21, 2021). "EJ Obiena denies not paying Ukrainian coach, threatens to 'immediately' retire". CNN Philippines. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
23. Torregoza, Hannah (November 24, 2021). "Senators want PSC's budget for Patafa removed if 'harassment' vs EJ Obiena persists". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
24. "EJ Obiena's patron hits at 'broken system' in PATAFA row". Rappler. December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
25. "Obiena-Patafa row deeply concerning". The Manila Times. December 5, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
26. "The High Road". The Philippine Star. December 18, 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
27. "POC declares Juico as persona non grata". The Manila Times. December 29, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
28. "POC declares Patafa chief Philip Juico persona non grata after Obiena rift". The Manila Times. December 28, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
29. Terrado, Reuben (March 30, 2022). "EJ Obiena, Patafa reach agreement during PSC mediation". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved March 30, 2022.

External links

• Ernest John Obiena at World Athletics