Ernest John Obiena (Photo couresy of ISTAF Indoor Facebook)
MANILA – World No. 6 pole vaulter EJ Obiena finished fourth at the ISTAF Indoor Berlin event in Germany on Saturday, amid his row with the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA) and after a knee surgery last month.
The eight-man final field included world record holder and Olympic champion Mondo Duplantis, who took the gold with a 6.03-meter clearance.
American KC Lightfoot came in second at 5.92.
Obiena cleared 5.7 meters in his first try to take the tiebreaker over Bo Kanda Lita Baehre of Germany and Piotr Lisek of Poland, who also leaped past 5.7 but needed two attempts to do so.
He missed out on a podium finish after failing to clear 5.81, giving the host country a reason to celebrate as Olen Zernikel took the bronze by jumping past the said height in just one move.
In a statement last week, PATAFA said it is moving on from Obiena's decision to remove himself from its jurisdiction and compete on his own.
Obiena and the association have been locked in a dispute over money issues, with the former refusing mediation which he said PATAFA is using “as means to silence me and to keep the truth hidden”.
He will next compete in Uppsala, Sweden on February 9; Lodz, Poland on February 11; Lievin, France on February 17; and Torun, Poland on February 22. (PNA)
