Filipino pole vaulter EJ Obeina just missed out on a podium finish in the 2024 Paris Olympics pole vault final early Tuesday, August 6 (Philippine time). Ranked no. 2 in the world, and expected as one of the Philippines’ strongest contenders for a medal, Obeina narrowly missed the bronze medal to Greece’s Emmanouli Karalis. Obeina placed 4th overall in the finals.
EJ Obeina breezed through the heights from 5.50 to 5.90 meters but struggled to fully clear the 5.95 meters, even after making technical adjustments on the third attempt. One good attempt from the 28-year-old pole vaulter would have put pressure on Greece’s Emmanouli Karalis to clear the 6.0 meters in the next round.
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Obeina and Karalis both registered 5.90 meters. Karalis won through countback after clearing each of the first five heights on his first attempt. Obeina, on the other hand, fouled at 5.80 meters.
Regardless, EJ Obeina’s fourth-place finish improved from his final placing in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The past event placed him in the 11th spot.
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On the other hand, it was a big day for Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Armand Duplantis of Sweden. Karalis defended his title and set an Olympic record of 6.10 meters. This new record surpassed the previous mark of 6.03 meters set by Thiago Braz from Brazil at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Duplantis then raised the bar by clearing 6.25 meters on his third attempt. Thus, erasing his previous world record of 6.24 meters, which he set in a competition in China in April. United States’ Sam Kendricks took home the silver medal, while Greece’s Emmanouli Karalis obtained the bronze.
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