Obiena contracts COVID before World Championships 2023

Transcript

00:00 Despite his medal harvest at the World Championships, Filipino pole vault pride EJ Obiena shared

00:06 his big disappointment after getting infected with COVID, which forced him to stop training

00:10 for several weeks and actually doubted his performance at the biggest athletic meet in

00:15 the world.

00:16 KSN Sean has the full story.

00:17 Asia's top pole vaulter EJ Obiena disclosed that his historic performance was not as smooth

00:25 as expected at the World Athletics Championships held in Budapest, Hungary over the weekend.

00:30 For the first time ever, the Philippines got a silver at the biggest athletics tournament

00:34 in the world following the 6-meter mark registered by the 28-year-old Italy baseball vaulter.

00:40 This is the second time Obiena reached said record, which he first clinched at the Virgin

00:44 Jump Challenge in Norway last June.

00:47 Obiena tried to hit the said Asian record and level up his season best after his 6.05

00:52 and 6.10 meters attempt but failed to do so.

00:55 Defending Olympic champion Armando Plantis of Sweden still dominated the pole vault event

01:00 with a 6.10 meters record.

01:02 Curtis Marshall of Australia and Christopher Nilsson of USA got the bronze with a 5.95

01:07 meters mark.

01:08 A day after his campaign at the World Athletics Championships, Obiena released his recorded

01:12 statement in his social media account showing himself on quarantine due to COVID.

01:17 "It's been a little bit mentally taxing right now, knowing that I might just have the best

01:28 season of my career.

01:30 But come the major championship, unfortunately I got sick and got COVID.

01:37 It's tough.

01:40 So we're moving forward.

01:43 We're going to do what we can to be ready come the 23rd and hopefully 26th."

01:51 Currently, Obiena has 19 medals from 20 different indoor and outdoor tournaments he joined this

01:57 season.

01:58 The next big international event that World No. 3 Obiena will be participating in would

02:02 be the 19th Asian Games in China which will start on September 30 and end on October 8.

02:08 KSN Sean for The Nation.

02:10 (upbeat music)