After a securing a spot in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Filipino pole vaulter EJ Obiena surged to the 10th spot of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) men’s pole vault World Rankings.
It was a big leap for Obiena, who just last August was at 15th spot, a report by The Philippine Star said.
Heavily contributing to Obiena’s rise in the rankings was his gold-winning performance at the Salto Con L’asta In Piazza Chiari 2019 in Italy earlier this month.
His golden showing in Italy allowed Obiena to become the first Filipino to qualify for the quadriennial sports event.
The 23-year-old Filipino, who has successfully come back from an ACL injury in 2018, is the only Filipino and the highest-ranked Asian on the list.