ARMAND Duplantis is the only one standing between Filipino Ernest John "EJ" Obiena and the Olympic gold medal in Paris next year.
Duplantis is the world's top pole vaulter, and Obiena is No. 2. The 23-year-old Swedish force of nature owns the world record at 6.23 meters, and the 27-year-old athlete from Tondo holds the Asian record at 6.0 meters flat, also his best jump.
Obiena and Duplantis are good friends, and the former looks at the latter as inspiration and a challenge.
"He's nothing short of an amazing person and an amazing athlete. All praises to him, and I think he elevated the sport to a certain level," Obiena said.
Obiena defeated the reigning Olympic and World champion at the Wanda Diamond League in Brussels on Sept. 3, 2022, and the Filipino sports icon believes he can do it again in Paris.
"Do I think I can beat him? I do think so. I mean, that's why I'm still training. That's why I think I have a lot of things to work on," Obiena said.
"All I can think about is just to improve and close that gap."
Obiena said he has never cleared 6.0 meters in training, but when adrenaline kicks in while in competition, he can surprise even himself with what he can achieve.
"That's why we're trying to attempt it. That's the goal, to try higher and higher," he said.
Obiena, who regularly trains and competes in Europe, is in the country after copping the gold medal in the Asian Games for the first time on Sept. 30, 2023.
He cleared the 5.90-meter bar in Hangzhou, China, to erase the Asian Games mark of 5.70 meters set by Seito Yamamoto of Japan in 2018. Obiena tried to reset his personal best but failed to clear 6.02 meters.
His stop in the country is not much of a vacation; he gets invited to gatherings and celebratory events left and right. It has also been fruitful because of the bonuses he gets left and right.
On Tuesday, Obiena attended three events. The first was in Binondo, Manila, where the Federation of Filipino Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. gave him a P5-million bonus.
He then scooted to Greenhills, where he auctioned several of his training and competition gears to raise funds for his grassroots pole vault advocacy.
Later in the afternoon, he went to Makati for a "meet and greet" activity at the Allianz PNB Life Headquarters.
As brand ambassador of Allianz PNB Life since October 2021, Obiena promised to remain a shining example of Filipino excellence and reach new heights in international sports.
As a reward, Obiena has been given insurance coverage for life under the Allianz Shield plan.
Obiena also received a P3-million gift from his former school, Chiang Kai Shek College, and P1 million each from Quanzhou Philippines Association president Anson Tan and Carlos Chan of Oishi.
His gold medal performance in the Asian Games also assured him of a P2-million incentive from the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) under the Athletes and Coaches Incentives Act, while the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) promised to give him a P1-million bonus.
Obiena said he has not decided yet on how to utilize his financial incentives. "The first thing I have in my mind is to share this with my team. It's not just mine. It may be the athlete who competed, you know, but behind my back is a team that sacrificed at work," he said. "I think they deserve it as well."
Obiena's team is led by coach Vitaly Petrov and physiotherapist Anton Guglietta.
"I will use the rest to fund my Olympic campaign starting this off-season," he added.
Obiena is set to leave the country on October 15 for an extended vacation in Dubai before heading back to training camp in Italy to prepare for the 2024 Olympics set from July 26 to August 11.
Obiena said he felt tremendous pressure in Hangzhou because "you guys have been telling the world that it's a sure gold for me even before the [Asian] Games started." It was a no-contest.
Huang Bokai of China finished a distant second to Obiena at 5.65 meters.
"I was amazed to get 5.90 [meters at the Asian Games], to be honest," he said. "It has been a long season [for me], and I was running on fumes [at the Asian Games]." He said most of the pole vaulters in the European circuit started competing in June or July and finished in August or September.
"I started in May because of the Southeast Asian Games, and I ended at the Asian Games when most of these guys are already in the off-season," he added.
Obiena will compete in February 2024 at the start of the indoor season and said he will probably join four or five events before the Olympic Games.
"All I can say is that it will be a lot of hard work and a lot of precise sessions and precise timings of certain things," he said, referring to his bid for the Olympic gold.