EJ Obiena, an Olympic pole vaulter, has made a remarkable recovery, winning gold on Friday (Manila time) at the Irena Szewinska Memorial in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
In preparation for the Olympics in Paris the following month, Obiena cleared 5.97 meters to overtake Emmanouil Karalis of Greece, who had previously cleared 5.92 meters.
Both competitors tried to break the 6.02-meter barrier but were unable, indicating that Obiena had won.
Piotr Lisek of Poland came in third place with a 5.75-meter jump.
Obiena has lately had a string of inconsistent results. After breaking a pole at the Ostrava Golden Spike in the Czech Republic, he finished seventh in the race that brought him gold at the Los Angeles Grand Prix last month.
Rebounding, he won a silver medal at the Oslo Bislett Games and turned in another impressive performance at the BAUHAUS-galan in Sweden.
