ERRING on the side of caution and wary that it may affect his peaking time and performance, pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena has decided to delay getting vaccinated against COVID-19 until after the Tokyo Olympics, according to his father and national pole vault coach Emerson Obiena.
“Sa ngayon deferred po muna ‘yung vaccine,” the elder Obiena said yesterday during the Philippine Sportswriters Association online forum.
“Kasi ‘yung training program naka-in place na so as much as possible they would like to follow ‘yung progression nila” added the coach, referring to the Olympic build-up master plan for his son by World Athletics elite training camp coach Vitaly Petrov of Ukraine.
Petrov is also the mentor of compatriot and former world and Olympic champion Sergey Bubka as well as Brazilian Rio Olympic Games men’s pole vault gold medalist Thiago Braz, who has been the training partner of Obiena at the World Athletics training camp in Formia, Italy since 2015.
“Base po doon sa pa kanilang pagtatanong sa reactions duon sa may vaccine na, hindi maganda ‘yung pakiramdaman noong atleta na umaabot ng 10 days. ‘Yung 10 days na hindi ka makakapag-training sayang ‘yung pinaghandaan kung mahihinto,” the elder Obiena explained.
The International Olympic Committee, which organizes the Olympics, has strongly recommended that all Olympic participants be vaccinated before competing in Tokyo but has not made it mandatory for participation in the quadrennial sports festival.
“Kung hindi makapag-vaccine, dagdagan na lang ‘yung ingat para ‘yung preparation ay hindi maapektuhan,” the coach said. “Tapos po ng Olympics para mapag-usapan kung kalian mag-papa-vaccine.”
Obiena set a new national outdoor record of 5.85 meters in winning the Jump & Fly meet last week in Mossingen, Germany, a height that the elder Obiena said poses no problems for many of his son’s potential rivals.
It was just one centimeter off Obiena’s national standard of 5.86 meters in his runner-up finish booked indoors in the Orlen Cup in Lodz, Poland just February.
“But I believe my son is capable of 5.90 meters or better as long as his new poles arrive,” the elder Obiena said of the replacement poles being shipped from the US after one of his old ones cracked during the indoor season.
“Ayaw naming isugal na gamitin ni EJ ‘yun kasi baka mag-snap at maaksidente siya,” the father-coach said.
“Hopefully, dumating na ‘yun para makumpleto na ‘yung gamit niya at maka-adjust na siya doon,” he said, “para magamay na niya ito at maging buo ang loob na gagamitin sa laban (in the Olympics).”
