Not even time zones and miles could keep EJ Obiena from adding to his trophy case on Monday morning.
Fresh from winning gold at the Asian Indoors in Tianjin, China, Obiena flew all the way to Germany and copped bronze at the INIT Indoor Meeting in Karlsruhe. It is Obiena’s fourth podium finish in 2026 as he looks to reclaim his status as one of the world’s top pole vaulters.
The 30-year-old Filipino had a rocky start to his INIT stint, skipping 5.30m but taking two tries to clear 5.45m. He then cleared 5.70m but failed on his first try at 5.78m. He declined his second and third attempts at that height to instead proceed to 5.84m. Unfortunately for the Filipino bet, he failed at that height twice and had to settle for bronze.
World No. 9 Sondre Guttormsen of Norway won gold after clearing 5.84m, while World No. 23 Cole Walsh of the US came in second after clearing 5.78m. Obiena bagged third on countback after winding up tied with World No. 5 Menno Vloon of the Netherlands and World No. 20 Simen Guttormsen of Norway.
Obiena’s Whirlwind Trip to Germany
While the two-time Olympian would’ve surely loved to win gold in Germany, just making it there to compete was an accomplishment in itself, as he had to go through logistical hurdles to fly from China to Germany.
According to veteran scribe Quinito Henson, Obiena took a two-hour drive from Tianjin to Beijing, an 11-hour flight from Beijing to Frankfurt, and a 90-minute ride from Frankfurt to Karlsruhe just to make it to the first World Tour Gold event of the season. That he got a podium finish even after all that traveling is a testament to the world-class shape Obiena is in, his commitment to the sport, and his natural talent.
Obiena’s insistence on defying time zones to take part in the INIT event is understandable, as he’s looking to qualify for the World Indoors in Kuyavian-Pomeranian, Poland, on March 20–22.
