By Nick Giongco
Pole vaulter EJ Obiena remains in training but is on the lookout for a new place to stay in coronavirus-ravaged Italy, according to the Philippine Track and Field Association (Patafa).
Ernest John Obiena (Photo by TED ALJIBE / AFP)
Obiena, the first Filipino to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics has been based there the past few years and Patafa president Philip Juico bared on the phone that “Italian authorities (have) ordered EJ to vacate the dorm at Formia.”
The Manila Bulletin sought more information from Juico but got no response even up to presstime.
Since the whole of Italy is on lockdown, there is no way Obiena, 23, who took the gold in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, can return to the country and reunite with his parents.
Nonetheless, Obiena and a few select athletes are the only ones allowed to use the training facilities.
“So far training goes on and things are still going well for the preparation. We are one of the lucky ones who can still train with the current lockdown,” said Obiena.
With the Tokyo Olympics under threat of being postponed or even scrapped, Obiena admits the situation has affected those concerned.
“It’s a bit of a stress that we were definitely not prepared for. I’m not gonna stop preparing as things are still a go at the moment but we already have a contingency plan,” he added.
Obiena, an Engineering student of the University of Santo Tomas, secured an Olympic berth after topping a tournament in Europe last September and is one of four Filipino athletes who have made the Olympic grade.
The others are world champion gymnast Carlos Yulo and boxers Eumir Felix Marcial and Irish Magno.
Source: Manila Bulletin
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