February 28 ------ Two more Filipino athletes have qualified to join pole vault star EJ Obiena in the 2024 World Indoor Athletics Championships scheduled on March 1 to 3 in Glasgow, Scotland. Fil-Spaniard John Cabang Tolentino and Fil-American Lauren Hoffman have earned berths to the exclusive world tilt following their recent performances in the international stage.
Cabang will be competing in the men’s 60-meter hurdles while Hoffman will see action in the women’s 400m. Both athletes recently made podium finishes in record-breaking fashion, with Cabang sprinting his way to the bronze medal in the 11th Asian Indoor Athletics Championships in Tehran, Iran last week.
In that tournament, the 22-year-old clocked 7.64 seconds to also erase the 10-year-old Philipping indoor record of 7.86sec set by Fil-Am Eric Cray. Hoffman, for her part, also shattered the national indoor mark in her event twice -- first at the 2024 Clemson Bob Pollock Invitational last January, then at the 2024 Clemson Tiger Paw Invitational this month both held in South Carolina. Pending ratification, her own PH indoor record is 53.71sec.
Hoffman will first take the stage in the heats on March 1, followed by Cabang in the heats on March 2. The world No. 2 Obiena, who will compete in the men’s pole vault, will see action on March 3. Like Cabang and Hoffman, Obiena is coming off a short but impressive season after winning two gold medals in Croatia and Germany.
His last feat -- at the ISTAF Indoor in Berlin -- actually smashed the 26-year-old Asian indoor record after clearing the bar at 5.93 meters.
Source: mb.com.ph
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