By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
EJ Obiena sustained his fine form by bagging the NetAachen Domspringen title in Katschhof, Aachen Germany on Wednesday, Sept. 6.
With the grace and might of an eagle, Obiena soared over the 5.92-meter barrier to rule the 15-player field, beating big names like American Sam Kendricks and Frenchman Thibaut Collet of France.
That was also the height he cleared in ruling the ISTAF in Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany three days ago.
Kendricks posted 5.87m for the silver while Collet registered 5.82m for the bronze.
The back-to-back wins somehow erased the stigma of a last-place finish in the Zurich leg of the Wanda Diamond League in Switzerland last Aug. 31 where he only managed 5.60m.
Dutch Olympian Menno Vloon and American Austin Miller finished fourth to fifth places with identical 5.75m, while France’s Ethan Cormont came in sixth with 5.65m.
Other finishers include German Gillian Ladwig and United States’ Matt Ludwig (5.65m); Latvia’s Valters Kreiss and Saudi Arabia’s Hussain Asim Al Hizam (5.40m); Switzerland’s Dominik Alberto, Germany’s Tom-Linus Humann and Till Marburger (5.20m), and hometown bets Hendrik Muller and Belgium’s Thomas Van Nuffelen (5.00m).
Up next for Obiena is the Brussels leg of the Wanda Diamond League, where he will be up against the same cast he battled with in Zurich that include world champion Armand Duplantis, world bronze winners Chris Nilsen and Kurtis Marschall.
The tournament will also serve as a springboard for his preparations for the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China on Sept. 30.
