BY NICK GIONGCO
Locked down in coronavirus-ravaged Italy, pole vaulter EJ Obiena described himself as an “athlete trying to get by” as he keenly awaits word when the Formia Olympic Training Center is able to welcome him back.
Obiena, the first Filipino to secure a berth for the Tokyo Olympics rescheduled next year, has received word that the world-class venue could open on May 4 after several weeks of being ordered closed for quarantine purposes by Italian authorities.
Before the lockdown, Obiena used to stay within the premises of the training center but was forced to pack his bags and stay at the apartment of long-time training partner of Brazilian Thiago Da Silva, the 2016 Rio Olympics gold medalist.
Obiena is just one of five athletes, including Da Silva, who has opted to remain in Formia, a seaside city halfway between Rome and Naples, under the watchful eyes of renowned Ukrainian coach Vitaly Petrov.
Obiena, whose personal-best is 5.81 meters, a mark he achieved during a tournament in the city of Chiara last September, has been in Formia since the third week of December of last year.
Obiena is a bit anxious about the situation back in the Philippines after learning that the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) has explored the idea of finding ways on how to finance the athletes’ training.
“Honestly, I don’t know what to think about it. I am definitely struggling to manage expenses right now because I am actually spending more because of food expenses,” said the 6-foot-2 Obiena, who also took gold in the 30th Southeast Asian Games last year.
“I would hope that it would not arrive to that point because there are a lot of athletes including me that depends on government support,” he said.
Obiena reasoned out that “we are not like basketball players that have pro contracts that are paid in the millions.”
The PSC gets part of its funding from the Pagcor by way of gaming revenues but with casino operations suspended owing to the pandemic, there is fear that the contributions might lessen considerably so the money can be used to help in the fight against the virus.
Still, the Pagcor managed to remit its monthly contribution to the PSC for March after also doing so in January and February.
With the crisis entering a crucial phase, it could not be determined if there would be similar remittances in the next few months.
