EJ Obiena bags 2 medals in 2 days

Two-time Olympic pole vaulter EJ Obiena struck gold and bronze in a span of two days, ruling the men’s pole vault at the 2026 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships on Feb. 7 before adding a bronze medal at the INIT Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe in Germany on Feb. 9.

The back-to-back podium finishes underscored Obiena’s strong start to the indoor season and reaffirmed his status as Asia’s top pole vaulter, as the two-time Olympian carried his championship form from Tianjin, China, straight into the European circuit with little drop in form.


In Tianjin, Obiena cleared 5.70 meters on his first attempt, leaving China’s Li Chenyang behind in silver after failing to clear the same height in three attempts. 



Fellow Chinese vaulter Chen Yang completed the podium with a bronze after breaching 5.40 meters. 



Obiena, who holds the Asian record at 5.93 meters, attempted to surpass 5.80 meters but was unsuccessful in all three tries, though the victory still marked a milestone as he captured the last remaining Asian Indoor Athletics gold in his collection.

Two days later in Germany, Obiena maintained his momentum at the INIT Indoor Meeting in Karlsruhe, finishing with a bronze medal after clearing the same height of 5.70 meters. 

Norwegian Sondre Guttormsen took gold with a 5.84-meter jump, while American Cole Walsh claimed silver at 5.78 meters.



The Filipino pole vaulter had already opened the 2026 season on a high note at the International Springer Meeting in Cottbus, Germany, on Jan. 29, where he cleared 5.77 meters to claim his first gold medal of the year.

Obiena will continue his European swing with competitions later this month as he looks to build on his strong start to the season.