Obiena matches indoor personal best for bronze finish in Mondo Classic
By Ernest Martin Tuazon
Thomasian pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena tied his personal best (PB) and indoor national record of 5.91m en route to a bronze finish at the Mondo Classic, early Friday morning (Philippine time) in Uppsala, Sweden.
Obiena previously notched his indoor PB and national record after clearing 5.91m in the Perche Elite Tour last March 2022 in Rouen, France.
The Olympian needed all of his three attempts to clear his season best, indoor PB, and national record after barely eclipsing 5.91m in his final go.
Unlike his first two tournaments in the 2023 indoor season where he struggled in the lower heights, Obiena started off strong this time around with one-vault clearances in 5.52m and 5.67m, respectively.
The 27-year-old pole vault sensation also eclipsed his 2023 season best of 5.82m recorded in the Perche En Or Tournament after being able to clear the said height in two tries.
Obiena tried to clear the long elusive height of 6.00m and 6.05m, but this remains a vault yet to be cleared for the Olympian after missing his attempts.
Swedish pole vault star Armand Duplantis finished first after tying his tournament best of 6.10m, while USA’s KC Lightfoot finished second over Obiena’s 5.91m due to the countback rule.
The Mondo Classic featured the 10 best pole vaulters across the globe with the likes of Duplantis, 2016 Rio Olympics champion Thiago Braz of Brazil, and USA bet Sam Kendricks among others.
