EJ Obiena cops silver as Mondo Duplantis rules ISTAF Indoor Berlin

FILE–The Philippines’ EJ Obiena competes. (Photo by Fredrik SANDBERG / TT News Agency / AFP)

MANILA, Philippines — EJ Obiena finished second behind Mondo Duplantis who ruled the ISTAF Indoor Berlin for the third straight time on Saturday (Manila time) at Mercedes Benz Arena in Germany.

The Filipino pole vaulter cleared 5.82 meters to bag the silver medal in the eight-man World Athletics Indoor event.

Sweden’s Duplantis, the world’s top pole vaulter, set a new meet record of 6.06m and won his second gold medal this year.

On Friday, Duplantis easily succeeded at 5.60m, 5.82m, 5.91m and 6.06m before being foiled in his attempt to improve on his own world record of 6.21m set in Eugene in July last year.

“My attempts at 6.22m were good, I was closer than last week which is good,” he said.

“To get 6.22m everything has to be perfect, I wasn’t quite perfect enough to make it here.”

Kurtis Marschall of Australia also cleared 5.82m but he settle for bronze as Obiena earned second place via countback.

Obiena, the World No.3 pole vaulter, made it to the podium in his first six indoor tournaments this year with three gold medals, including back-to-back triumphs in the Orlen Cup and Copernicus Cup.

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The 27-year-old Olympic pole vaulter on Wednesday announced that he will no longer participate in the Asian Indoor Championships due to logistical and financial issues.

Hours before his tournament in Germany, Obiena said he received pledges of donations from people after withdrawing from the Asian Indoor Championships in Kazakhstan.

But while he appreciates the ‘Bayanihan’, Obiena said it “doesn’t feel right to ask or accept kind donations at this time.”

“I am a national athlete and my expenses have been approved for payment by the PSC and funded from taxpayer revenues.  As all of you are taxpayers, I must respect that you have already paid for my training,” Obiena wrote. “It is just not the right thing to do to ask you to pay once via paying taxes, and then pay again privately. This is “double dipping” and it’s not ethical.”

“A team of people is working on the matter now and I must have faith they will resolve it soon. It hence would be questionable for me to accept donations and then having this resolve in the near future and “double dipping”.  I should allow some time for this to resolve,” he added.

Obiena expressed his gratitude to the people who reached out to him, asking them to use it for themselves and their families as he vows to resolve the financial woes with his team together with various sports officials assisting him. With reports from Agence France-Presse