Obiena stuns world record holder Duplantis to rule Belgium meet
By Ernest Martin Tuazon
Thomasian pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena scored a stunning victory over world no.1 Armand Duplantis in the Belgium leg of the Wanda Diamond League, early Saturday morning (Philippine time).
The third-ranked pole vaulter in the world handed Duplantis his first loss in over a year with a clutch 5.91m clearance to extend his gold streak to three consecutive tournaments.
Obiena seamlessly cleared his first vault of 5.61m in one attempt, along with American bet Chris Nilsen and French Olympian Renaud Lavillenie. Duplantis meanwhile, needed two tries to clear the said height.
Swedish sensation Duplantis fired back at Obiena as he vaulted through 5.81m in one go, while the 26-year-old Filipino utilized two of his three attempts.
In a surprising turn of events, Nilsen, Lavillenie, Brazilian pole vaulter Thiago Braz, and Dutch athlete Rutger Koppelaar all did not clear the 5.81m, which paved the way for a duel between two of the top three pole vaulters in the world.
Both EJ and Mondo could not score a vault in their first two attempts at the height of 5.91m, until Obiena came thru in the clutch to put Duplantis to sleep in his final attempt. The latter was not able to clear the said height with all of his three attempts.
Nilsen and Duplantis rounded up the podium with 5.71m and 5.81m clearances en route to bagging bronze and silver, respectively.
This is EJ Obiena’s highest clearance during his seven-tournament itinerary which began in Stabhochsprungmeeting, Athletissisma tilt, True Athletes Classic, and St. Wendel City Jump where he bagged three golds and one bronze.
Obiena looks to end his busy week on a high note in the ISTAF Berlin meet, in Berlin, Germany, early Monday morning (Philippine time).
