ACE pole vaulter EJ Obiena grabbed headlines anew on Feb. 23 when he won a second gold medal in Europe.
The win came barely 10 days after ruling a similar event, clearing 5.81 meters in topping the 2022 Orlen Copernicus Cup in Poland’s Arena Torun.
It matched his gold-winning vault earlier in the Orlen Cup in Lodz, Poland, beating Belgium’s Ben Broeders and 2016 Rio Olympic champion Thiago Braz.
Both Broeders and Braz cleared 5.71m in Torun, but Broeders took the silver by countback.
President Philip Ella Juico of the Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (Patafa) wasn’t as elated—naturally.
“Congratulations to him and the other participants,” said Juico, whose rift with Obiena on liquidation matters on the salaries of Obiena’s Ukrainian coach remains unresolved.
It is that long-running feud that has also led Juico into dropping the world No. 5 vaulter from the list of athletes bound for the 2022 SEA Games set in May.
“Obiena is not in the national training pool list, so we have to discuss that among ourselves in the Patafa board,” said Juico in a sports forum.
“We will have to look at his case, if he wants to participate in the SEA Games,” said Juico.
What case?
Isn’t Obiena automatically seeded for having won the gold in the 2019 Manila SEA Games? And isn’t his No. 5 world ranking more than enough credential for him to make it to the team? And aren’t his recent two gold medals in Poland enough to buy him a ticket to the Hanoi SEA Games set on May 12 to 25?
Juico seems to be taking his differences with Obiena personally?
“Other people said they would try to work for Obiena’s participation in Hanoi,” said Juico.
That’s an oblique reference to a recent statement by Olympic chief Bambol Tolentino backing Obiena’s participation in overseas tussles.
“Let’s see what works,” said Juico.
Ambivalent? And how about this?
“Obiena is out of the training pool but he is not expelled from Patafa,” said Patafa chair Rufus Rodriguez.
Double-edged? Which is which?
What is clear is, Juico’s finance-laced beef with Obiena is one thing, and Obiena’s deserved SEA Games slot is another.
Again, humbly, I say: Athletes deliver medals, never our leaders.