Obiena, Tabal get Rio Olympics backing

Pole vaulter EJ Obiena and marathoner Mary Joy Tabal will get all the resources they need to be able to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro.

Philippine Amateur Track and Field Association chief Philip Ella Juico said Patafa will do everything possible so that the two silver medalists in the recent Southeast Asian Games can compete in the biggest gathering of the world’s top athletes next year.

He said Obiena and Tabal will go through a series of foreign exposures to achieve their Olympic dream in the company of Eric Cray, who met the Olympic standard of 50 seconds flat in the 400-meter hurdles in a race held in Cayman Island last May 16.

“We’re preparing a program for Cray, Tabal and Obiena,” said Juico.

Cray won the men’s 100m dash and broke the 400m hurdles record in Singapore.

The 26-year-old Filipino-American is now seventh in the world rankings after clocking 49.12 seconds in the Cayman Invite.

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