EJ OBIENA DEFENDS HIS CROWN | 2026 ASIAN GAMES

Okay.

So you know you're this good when almost everyone in the stadium is calling for you to do an encore.

I personally don't want to see the encore, but I have my reasons.

When he did it, though, it looked super awesome!

Anyway, EJ Obiena successfully defended his 2022 Asian Games gold by placing first in the pole vault competition, and then some.

At first, it felt like the usual Philippines-versus-China thing. However, without a dude named Mondo Duplantis participating in the competition, Obiena pretty much displayed just how dominant he is in Asia, with the two nearest competitors stuck at 5.70m after he successfully cleared 5.75m.

And here's the part where I was initially against him trying to break the Asian Games record.

The stadium was wet because of the heavy rains in Nagoya.

Alex Eala played her second consecutive game, this time with Shaira Rivera, at the Games' indoor practice stadium. Side note: you can see the difference between Eala and Rivera here. Alex looked awesome in her Nike gear, while Shaira looked like a girl wearing her P.E. uniform.

In the Paris Olympics, Obiena was dealing with a back injury, and it played a role in him missing out on a podium finish. I know the events still continued all around the stadium, but what if he slipped? Or his pole slipped? Or something went wrong somewhere during the attempt? I mean, he got the goal.

Although, again, he has a different mindset, which is why he's one of the best pole vaulters in the world, while I am just an armchair stats guy blogging for the sheer “fun” of it.

Anyway, EJ Obiena had the gold in the bag when the two Chinese athletes failed to get past 5.75m. And then, it felt like he wanted to break the record, but he also had to hear the fans calling for him to break it.

So Obiena took his time and checked all the variables. And then he went Super Saiyan on the challenge and cleared 5.91m.

Now, all I want for EJ is to finally stand on the podium at the Olympics. The dude is clearly a cut above the rest of his Asian counterparts, but now it's time for him to achieve legendary status by going for the gold medal in Los Angeles.

I know he'll face major opposition from both his old and new opponents, but 2028 is just around the corner, and we need his awesomeness to continue our gold-winning streak.