By Kristel Satumbaga
Olympic-bound pole vaulter EJ Obiena struggled in his fourth tournament for the month, finishing only fifth in the 66th Orlen Memorial Janusza Kusocinskiego in Poland on Tuesday.
Obiena, who is gearing up for next year’s Tokyo Olympics, managed only 5.62 meters in his third attempt and failed to make it to the podium for the first time.
The 24-year-old attempted 5.72m once and 5.77m twice, but failed – no thanks to his childish attitude.
“Will learn from this and get to work and finally get over this hitch,” he said in a Facebook post.
Rio Olympics bronze medalist Sam Kendricks of the United States, won the event with a season-best 5.82m while Netherlands’ Menno Vloon also posted his season-best of 5.72m for second.
Germany’s Raphael Holzdeppe settled for third with 5.62m on his first attempt.
Obiena competed in three previous tournaments with podium finishes: at the 13th Triveneto Meet in Italy where he finished silver (5.45m), at the elite Diamond League in Monaco where he pocketed bronze (5.70m), and at a virtual meet where he placed second (5.60m).
Despite these exposures, Obiena is yet to proximate his personal best of 5.81m.
