MANILA – World’s No. 2 pole vaulter EJ Obiena won two titles in Poland to lead the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) achievers for June.
The Olympic-bound Obiena registered a season-best 5.97 meters to secure the gold medal in the Irena Szewinska Memorial competition in Bydgoszcz.
He prevailed over nine entries in the World Athletics Gold category event, with Greek Emmanouil Karalis taking the silver medal in 5.92m and local bet Piotr Lisek posting 5.75m to get the bronze medal.
The 28-year-old Obiena sustained his winning form at the Czeslaw Cybulski Memorial in Poznan, clearing 5.87 meters to erase the 5.80m record of Lisek.
Lisek, the first Polish to jump over six meters, took the silver with 5.82m while Saudi Arabia’s Hussain Al-Hizam (5.62) took the bronze.
Also making the honor roll are boxers Carlo Paalam and Hergie Bacyadan, golfers Bianca Pagdanganan and Dottie Ardina, and judoka Kiyomi Watanabe.
Paalam defeated India’s Sachin Siwach by unanimous decision in the men’s 57kg class semifinal of the 2nd Boxing World Olympic Qualification Tournament in Thailand to earn a Paris berth. He won the silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
Bacyadan also qualified for Paris after a 5-0 quarterfinal win over Maryelis Yriza of Venezuela in the women’s 75kg division.
Pagdanganan and Ardina finished in the Top 60 of the women’s Olympic golf rankings, while Watanabe got a Continental quota.
The other members of the Olympic-bound PH team are weightlifters Vanessa Sarno, John Febuar Ceniza and Elreen Ando; boxers Aira Villegas, Nesthy Petecio and Eumir Felix Marcial; rower Joanie Delgaco; fencer Samantha Catantan; gymnasts Carlos Yulo, Emma Malabuyo, Aleah Finnegan and Levi Ruivivar; swimmers Kayla Sanchez and Harold Hatch; judoka Kiyomi Watanabe; and hurdlers Lauren Hoffman and John Cabang Tolentino.
Meanwhile, Jerold Mangliwan and Cendy Asusano also made it to the PSA monthly achievers list after qualifying for the Paris Paralympics.
Mangliwan met the high performance standard in the T52 400m, so did Asusano in the women’s F54 javelin throw.
They will join swimmers Ernie Gawilan and Angel Otom, taekwondo jin Allain Keanu Ganapin, and archer Agustina Bantiloc in the Paralympic Games scheduled from Aug. 28 to Sept. 8, 2024.
The Gilas Pilipinas women’s U18 team and the Meralco Bolts were included in the achievers list.
The Gilas girls clobbered Lebanon, 95-64, to capture the Division B title in the FIBA U18 Women’s Asia Cup in Shenzhen, China. They are promoted to Division A.
The Bolts, on the other hand, dethroned the San Miguel Beermen in Game 6 of the Season 48 Philippine Cup title series, 80-78, to claim their first-ever PBA crown. (PNA)
