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EJ Obiena competes despite heavy fog: ‘Leap of faith!’

Article (news)

Peter Andrew Acierto

Push Team

<p>Filipino Olympian EJ Obiena recalled his experience competing at the Taiwan International Pole Vault Championship last March where the weather condition wasn’t ideal for pole vaulting due to the heavy fog. He took to his Instagram account to share how he had to trust himself despite the challenge of finding the pit.</p><div><br/></div><iframe class="instagram-media" id="instagram-embed-14" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DH48zMyzdag/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=540&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A14%2C%22os%22%3A17167854.700000048%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="0" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-14" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px;min-width:326px;padding:0px;position:absolute"></iframe><blockquote class=" instagram-media-registered" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/DH48zMyzdag/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" id="instagram-media-payload-14" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:16px"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DH48zMyzdag/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="background:#FFFFFF;line-height:0;padding:0 0;text-align:center;text-decoration:none;width:100%" target="_blank"><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;align-items:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:40px;margin-right:14px;width:40px"><br/></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:100px"><br/></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:60px"><br/></div></div></div><div style="padding:19% 0"><br/></div><div style="display:block;height:50px;margin:0 auto 12px;width:50px"><br/></div><div style="padding-top:8px"><div style="color:#3897f0;line-height:18px">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding:12.5% 0"><br/></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:row;margin-bottom:14px;align-items:center"><div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(0px) translateY(7px)"><br/></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;height:12.5px;transform:rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px);width:12.5px;flex-grow:0;margin-right:14px;margin-left:2px"><br/></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;height:12.5px;width:12.5px;transform:translateX(9px) translateY(-18px)"><br/></div></div><div style="margin-left:8px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:50%;flex-grow:0;height:20px;width:20px"><br/></div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:2px solid transparent;border-left:6px solid #f4f4f4;border-bottom:2px solid transparent;transform:translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"><br/></div></div><div style="margin-left:auto"><div style="width:0px;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-right:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(16px)"><br/></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;flex-grow:0;height:12px;width:16px;transform:translateY(-4px)"><br/></div><div style="width:0;height:0;border-top:8px solid #F4F4F4;border-left:8px solid transparent;transform:translateY(-4px) translateX(8px)"><br/></div></div></div><div style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center;margin-bottom:24px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:224px"><br/></div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:144px"><br/></div></div></a><div style="color:#c9c8cd;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DH48zMyzdag/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color:#c9c8cd;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Ernest Obiena (@ernestobienapv)</a></div></div></blockquote><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>EJ was hailed as the champion of the tournament after making the 5.50m jump.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2024/12/1/ej-obiena-begins-mentorship-in-pole-vaulting-0949"><strong>READ: EJ Obiena begins mentorship in pole vaulting: ‘I believe in investing in our youth’</strong></a></div><p>The Filipino pole vaulter shared how this was a totally new experience for him–– playing with poor visibility in a sport that relies heavily on hitting the pit accurately. </p><p>“During several of the many flights I have taken to compete in Pole vault around the world, I have indeed encountered fog warnings at the airport where you can see very little,” he shared.</p><p>Taiwan had a fog warning while the competition was ongoing and the organizers pushed through despite the visual difficulty for the athletes. EJ showed a glimpse of what it was like to run in the heavy fog to the surprise of his fans in the comment section.</p><p>“I had my first fog warning in the midst of a pole vault competition, in Taiwan. Here (3rd slide) is what the approach looked like heading towards the vault. You just disappear. Talk about the proverbial &#x27;Leap of faith,&#x27;” he added.</p><p>Despite the leap of faith he had to make, the Paris 2024 athlete expressed his gratitude in winning the competition given the weather conditions he played in.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2025/3/5/ej-obiena-shifts-priority-to-outdoor-season-i-believe-my-best-vaults-are-ahead-1311"><strong>READ: EJ Obiena shifts priority to outdoor season: ‘I believe my best vaults are ahead’</strong></a></div><p>“We can’t always have sunny skies and perfect weather conditions. We have to persevere through all kinds of adversity. This was a new kind of adversity and I definitely learned from it,” he said.</p><p>EJ has been preparing for the outdoor season of pole vaulting as he revealed that it was too late for him to participate in the 2025 World Indoor Championships. He has been plagued with injuries right after his Paris 2024 stint and has been recovering well.</p><p>“The indoor season is always a backseat to the outdoor season. I will hence prioritize and prepare for the upcoming outdoor competition. This is when I would represent the country in the World Championships, Asian Championships and SEA Games. The key is to go into the outdoor season healthy and ready to compete at the highest level. It is also important to defend what I have already achieved in these championships,” he previously shared.</p>

<p>EJ Obiena rises above adversities as he wins the Taiwan International Pole Vault Championship despite the heavy fog.</p>

EJ Obiena rises above adversities as he wins the Taiwan International Pole Vault Championship despite the heavy fog.