An open letter to EJ Obiena: We owe you everything

Yes, it was a heartbreaking loss at the 2024 Olympics men’s pole vault final, but congrats, man!A fourth-place finish at the world’s biggest sporting stage is no easy feat—not something to apologize for, but something to celebrate.

Still, it was a huge leap from your Tokyo 2020 performance where you ranked 11th. And for a persistent guy like you, there is surely no way but up!

I’ve been a huge fan ever since you won that historic bronze at the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships and the gold six years after. I was there, watching online with bated breath when you cleared 5.94 meters and won bronze at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon in 2022 followed by an equally historic silver in Budapest the year after, setting new national and Asian records in the process and bringing honor and pride to the Philippines.

It’s not hard to root for someone like you. You are competitive, articulate, confident yet humble—someone who gives his all and has this winning mentality. No wonder you’re the current World No. 2.

You are a true fighter, EJ. For two consecutive Olympics, you found yourself on the brink of early elimination at the qualifiers. But you’ve powered through!

But more than your fighting spirit, what amazes me most are the principles you live by. During the Tokyo finals, after your third “failed” attempt at 5.80 meters, didn’t you ask the field officials how you could make the bar when it was moving and the clock was already running? You assertively (but respectfully) pleaded your case and after quite a long discussion, you were allowed to re-jump. While that didn’t make any difference with the result, you reminded us of the importance of speaking up and fighting for what we believe is right, something that Filipinos, many of whom were raised to be meek and passive and to just let things pass, could learn from.

You’ve been through a lot, to say the least—an ACL injury in 2017 that almost made you quit, the false accusations of your federation that caused you so much stress. Given your talent, you could have accepted offers to represent other nations, but your love for us prevailed.

In Paris, how can we not be proud of you when you fought toe-to-toe with the best of the best in the world while enduring a lingering back injury, and still managed to clear a decent 5.90 m—a height that could have landed you on the podium in the previous editions of the Games? When you failed to clear the next bar at 5.95 m, you said it felt like the end of the world. Your voice breaking, you apologized profusely for falling short while you wiped your tears with the back of your hand. That broke my heart and made me teary-eyed, not because you lost, but because I know how much the Olympics meant to you.

So grieve if you must, and take your time to heal. Go get some rest, spend time with your family and loved ones, eat as many cheeseburgers as you want (and other food you’ve deprived yourself of for so long), and do what makes you happy. You deserve it!

When your mind is clear, maybe it’s time to finally re-think what’s best for you moving forward. Prioritizing yourself, perhaps? After all, you’ve already done so much for the country. Sure, it would be great to see you in LA 2028. But I know that it’s not going to be an easy decision to make even though you will only be 32 by then, still very much capable of competing. Because that would mean another four years of commitment, sacrifices, and hardships. The grueling training in a foreign land. The very strict diet. Time away from your family. Missing important milestones. Postponing college yet again. Enduring more injuries. But who knows? Hidilyn Diaz won on her third and fourth try, Carlos Yulo on his second. We know you can do it, too! It’s not a question of “if” but “when.” That’s how much we believe in you! What if LA 2028 is your time? What if we fail only if we stop trying?

Whatever your decision, know that the whole nation is here to support you and pray for you, whether in or out of the track and field. Remember that you don’t owe us anything; we owe you everything!

Ernesto “EJ” Legaspi,
ernestonerzalegaspi@gmail.com