MANILA, Philippines —Filipino pole vault ace Ernest John "EJ" Obiena ruled the ISTAF Berlin with a 5.82m clearance at the Olympiastadion in Germany early Monday, August 31 in Manila.
"5.82m here in Berlin for the gold," wrote Obiena in an Instagram post, captioning a video of him clearing the said height.
"Thank you Istaf Berlin for having me. Hope to see you again next year!"
Obiena thus swept the Istaf Berlin meets this year, having also ruled the indoor competition last March.
The 30-year-old also collected his fourth Istaf Berlin gold overall, ruling the 2023 outdoor meet and the 2024 indoor.
Overall this 2026, Obiena has collected nine gold medals as his resurgence continues after a lackluster 2025 season.
Aiming to qualify for the World Athletics Ultimate Championship slated from September 11 to 13, 2026, in Budapest, Hungary, Obiena tried to clear 5.97m but failed his three attempts.
"I missed the 5.97 so I am not going to the Ultimate championship. I started late, but I still have Brussels, I will go training now and I am looking for another competition. On the 20th of September I still have the Asian Games," said Obiena in an interview transcript posted on Watch Athletics live results website.
Obiena, who qualified for next year's World Championships with a 5.90m clearance at the Zurich Diamond League on August 27, said he didn't like how the tournament was organized this year in Berlin.
"To be honest, it did not feel so good to win here. I did not like to win this way. There was a lot of action on the track and the other pole vaulters were not happy with that. But, it is what it is," said Obiena.
"In previous years they always waited for us and our run-up. I do not feel like I won. This season was a bit tricky for me because I changed coaches in June. I am now working with Karalis´ father and I moved to Athens. I am getting into my jumping right now."
Belgian Ylio Philtjens finished second to Obiena with a 5.72m clearance, defeating third placer in French Robin Emig via countback (fewer attempts).
