I had to see it to believe it.

My brother told me that EJ Obiena did not win a medal in the pole vault finals at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to watch the finals live. It was at 1:00 AM Philippine time. I was in Lalaland.

So hearing about EJ Obiena’s 4th place finish was a “Wait, wwwwhhhhaaaaattttt?” moment.

Curiosity got the better of me.

So there I was, multitasking like a pro – eyes glued to the replay, hands busy with monthly reports.

Little did I know, the pole vault demigods were about to hand me lessons:

Lesson 1: Patience is a superpower.

These athletes don’t just train their bodies; they train their minds to endure the waiting game.

As in waiting for your next turn while your competitors were jumping.

Makes me wonder, what do you do with your waiting seasons? Or are you impatient?

Lesson 2: The G.O.A.T. Armand Duplantis is THE G.O.A.T. for two reasons that I have observed.

One, he didn’t do jumps in some meters. I heard the commentators said that at one time, Duplantis had rested for 30 minutes. (Check his final results in the screengrab.)

If he’s able to do that, then he knew the rules beforehand, then allowed it to work for him.

Second, because of number one, he’s able to reserve his energy, right when he needs it the most. It’s a classic example of working smarter.

Lesson 3: EJ Obiena was ONE JUMP AWAY from bronze. And we all had that.

It’s heartbreaking. It’s painful.

In his interview and official message, he’s very sorry about finishing 4th.

It’s great that most people are positive about it. They think he doesn’t need to apologize, that he did his best, that he’s young, and that he can still compete in 2028.

His apology? With all his efforts and improvements, it’s unnecessary.

But at this moment, EJ has probably cried and will still cry. And he needs it.

You also need it.

It’s part of the journey.

Then everything will be well soon.

So be patient.

Work smarter.

And just in case you jumped, and you fell, do cry, then get back up.

P.S.: I finished the reports. Hand me my medal.

Screengrab: One Sports