EJ Obiena pulls out of Init Indoor Meeting event in Germany

EJ Obiena has pulled out of the Init Indoor Meeting set in Karlsruhe, Germany on January 28, which was supposed to be his first taste of action after a long break.

Jim Lafferty, Obiena's adviser, said that the pole vaulter did not have enough preparation time for the said competition as he is coming off a surgery to repair a small meniscus tear on his left knee.

Lafferty added that Obiena's training was affected by his ongoing rift with his mother federation, Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (PATAFA).

"We have decided to pull out of Karlsruhe. EJ just hasn't had enough training days post surgery and his timing is off," Lafferty said on Wednesday.

"And of course the ongoing issues vis a vis Patafa don't help. The knee is fine and pain free. He just is having timing issues particularly on a full approach and this takes some time to work out."

Obiena was originally scheduled to jump at around 7 p.m. on Friday in Karlsruhe (around 2 a.m. Saturday in Manila) against top pole vaulters in the world such as 2020 Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Armand Duplantis.

Obiena is tipped to return to action next month at the ISTAF Indoor in Berlin on February 4.

—MGP, GMA News