EJ Obiena was three years ago for the first time standing atop an Asian Games podium, changing the perception of what a Filipino pole vaulter can do. He repeated the feat Tuesday night in Aichi-Nagoya, but not simply for the sake of a title. He was trying to convince himself that it wasn't a coincidence that he was so tall.
He carried away a number that he appeared to be taken aback by, a screaming that lasted nearly 15 seconds, and an answer to a question everyone wanted to ask him. This EJ Obiena Asian Games gold is his second consecutive and tougher of the two, he admits.
In one line: The EJ Obiena won gold in the men's pole vault at the Asian Games in one line on Sept. He jumped 5.91 metres to set a new competition record at the age of 29 in Hangzhou three years ago.
The mark was one centimeter better than his previous Asian Games record of 5.90 meters from the 2023 Games held in Hangzhou, but the figure's meaning is far greater than this. This was the same as Obiena's season-best, which he had managed once previously this year – at the Golden Sand, Promenada Gwiazd meet in Międzyzdroje, Poland in August. That was still just shy of his personal best mark from the 2023 Asian Games but it was enough to ensure the Asian Games pole vault event remained in the hands of the Filipino.
Defending champion and world No. 11 vaulter Obiena was the favourite to win the competition on paper. However, after three years of erratic playing since his emergence in 2023, Obiena's detractors, including Filipino fans, were beginning to doubt if that form of Obiena would grace the sidelines in Japan.
Yao Jie of China was left with silver after counting back from 23-year-old compatriot Li Chenyang who matched 5.70 meters for the bronze. Thailand's Amsaramng Patsapong had a season-high 5.60 meters and Qatar's Seifeldin Abdelsalam tied for fifth with 5.50 meters.
Throughout much of the contest, it seemed Obiena would be the victor with minimal drama – and a much shorter stature.
After his first two tries at 5.80m, he looked like he would just fall short of dropping an eagle at 5.75m, enough to qualify for gold with his competitors' bids complete. But he chose to increase the bar to 5.91m, which was a record height he had never jumped at the Asian Games before.
I'm beginning to get cramped though I feel like I had a good jump in me. I said that I would rather take that risk and I'll try to jump [5.91 meters] anyway, Obiena said after.
He cleared it. The Filipino contingent inside the stadium erupted with Obiena as he screamed out for almost 15 seconds before the release came. It was a three-year wait for a release that began with Obiena screaming almost for 15 seconds.
The 30-year-old veteran vehemently denied that he was finally returning when asked directly if the Obiena who broke records and won Olympic bronze in the same stretch was back.
"No, I'm better. That's for sure," he said. I'm getting smarter, I feel like I'm like a veteran of sorts.
Despite this, Obiena was honest that this gold wasn't as special as his first Asian Games gold in Hangzhou.
"The first one is definitely special. More special than this," he said. "The emotional high of a first is definitely something. But this one is, I feel like it's a bit of a reborn, a little bit of a different me. And with that, I'm satisfied. It doesn't mean that I'm not happy. Just that, you know, the first emotion is different... this one is: I'm happy, I'm ecstatic, as you can see. But, yeah, it doesn't linger as long as it used to be."
The turnaround, he said, was due to a mental change, not a technical change. "To be honest, I think I've found a little bit of a different perspective about my event, the things that I do. I'm enjoying it again," Obiena said. "I'm happy to be going to training. I'm happy to be here. I'm happy to train. I'm happy to compete. I'm happy to take the risk. It's the highs and lows of the sport. And with that said, you know, I don't think I need to change anything."
This EJ Obiena Asian Games gold was the Philippines' third of the 2026 Games, joining Carlos Yulo's two golds in men's gymnastics floor exercise and vault earlier in the week.
The day it landed was a busy one for Team Philippines in Aichi-Nagoya. In the same event, Victoria Bossong took home bronze in the women's 800m and Yacine Guermali (fifth, 13:44.61) and Sonny Wagdos (11th, 14:29.42) took part in the men's 5,000m. The Philippine athletes also finished seventh in the Men's 4x400m relay final and sixth in the Mixed 4x100m relay final.
The Philippines was aiming to build upon its Games results from last year's Hangzhou edition, which saw the team win four gold, two silver and 12 bronze medals from a team of over 450 athletes in 38 sports—the biggest Asian Games team in more than three decades.
As of Sept. The Philippines is currently sitting at 18 medals (3 gold, 3 silver and 12 bronze) in the Asian Games 2026 Medals Tally on ESPN, ranking 17th in the standings, better than Qatar with 12 and Singapore with 11 medals. The three golds come from Obiena and Yulo while the three silver medals from the women's sepak takraw doubles team, who lost 2-0 in the Sept. to Vietnam. After finishing in the top of the semifinals, they went on to win 29 gold-medal matches. The total of 12 bronze medals is supplemented by medals in track and field (Tolentino, Bossong), surfing (Alciso), men's regu in sepak takraw and more in the previous years of the Games.
What OKBet Sports has to offer Filipino fans of the Games and beyond:
The gold at the EJ Obiena Asian Games was won in the pole vault's men's final on Sept. 2026, Aichi-Nagoya, Japan - after winning in Hangzhou in 2023, he is aiming for his 2nd consecutive Asian Games gold medal in Nagoya, Japan on 29th and 2026.
The new Asian Games competition record of 5.91m, surpassing the existing record of 5.90m set in 2023. That was his 2026 season high, which he achieved back in August in Poland.
No. His personal mark is still 6.00m which he recorded in 2023. He is 5.91m in the 2026 season, his season-high mark.
Yao Jie of China took silver (5.70m, on countback), Li Chenyang of China bronze (5.70m), Amsaramng Patsapong of Thailand fourth (5.60m) and Seifeldin Abdelsalam of Qatar fifth (5.50m).
As of Sept. With 3 gold, 3 silver and 12 bronze medals (18 total), 30, the Philippines clinched 3 gold medals in Obiena and Carlos Yulo (two), a silver in the women's sepak takraw doubles team, and medals in various other sports, including athletics, surfing and sepak takraw. Boxing, judo and tennis competitions were still underway, and the final result could be different before the end of the Games.
No. While common among Philippine sportsbooks that cater mainly to team sports such as basketball and football, OKBet's sportsbook and sports content site do not feature medal-odds or futures markets for individual Asiad sports events, such as pole vault.
