Latest news with #GMANews
GMA Network
a day ago
- Sport
- GMA Network
‘My dad's still got it': EJ Obiena honors father's golden feat as he clinches Asian title
Emerson Obiena (left) is seen at the World Masters Games in Taipei, where he won gold. Screenshots from video posted by the Philippine Pole Vault Club and from GMA News Just days before pole vaulter EJ Obiena soared to another historic gold medal at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships, his father and lifelong inspiration, Emerson Obiena, struck gold himself, clearing 3.60 meters to win the men's 60+ pole vault event at the World Masters Games in Taipei. 'My dad's still got it. I'm still in awe, in a way. It's like I can't understand how this guy at the age of 61 now, yeah, turning 61, can still do what he does. And I don't know. I'm out of words with that,' EJ said, visibly moved. The younger Obiena, who began vaulting by mimicking his father as a child, was quick to honor the man who first introduced him to the sport.. 'Huge congratulations to him, you know, keeping his body in shape such a long time. It's incredible. It really is incredible,' he said. And then, as if inspired by his father's golden leap, EJ delivered a golden performance of his own. Despite battling a sore throat and unable to take any medication due to anti-doping rules, EJ Obiena soared to victory at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea. He cleared 5.77 meters in a dramatic jump-off against a top Chinese vaulter, securing his third consecutive Asian title after wins in 2019 and 2023. 'When you do the jump-off, that doesn't mean that you're gonna win,' he said. 'That means you could lose the gold as well, which we both already have. So, yeah, it's the toughest one out there and yeah, it's still good I'd say. I'm happy to retain it three consecutive times. And yeah, hopefully, it gets the ball rolling here in Europe.' Shortly after his win, EJ flew to Europe to prepare for a series of international competitions. But before South Korea, he spent valuable time training in the Philippines—something he hadn't done in years. 'Definitely having time with my family, having time with my grandmother, my mother, my family, my sister. It's definitely something that I'm more than grateful for to say the least. It's not something I've definitely been able to do for the past 10 years. Yeah, that's gonna be the highest.' EJ's return to form comes after a bittersweet showing at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he reached the finals but missed out on a medal. Unknown to many at the time, he was nursing a back injury that limited his performance. 'What it really needed was time, which I didn't have before Olympics. Can't just end up resting six weeks before Olympics. So we did what we could definitely… no regrets there. But when it comes to healing, it really is this time—getting the bone to heal, make sure that it's all… how do you say… back in one piece literally.' Looking ahead, EJ and his team are eyeing the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. But he's taking it one step, one vault, one competition at a time. 'So, if everything goes well, I'm healthy, I'm performing the way I should and I could, and I'm competitive with the global states… then definitely. But is it a guarantee? No. That's why I keep saying it's a day-to-day basis. It's a, you know, I'll take it one competition at a time.' He knows the challenge ahead is steep—especially with the possibility of facing world number one Mondo Duplantis again. But for EJ, the dream remains alive. 'But the good thing about it is you push yourself to the best of your abilities. And with that, I'm with everyone. I hope that the time would come where I could win. And I just don't know when that would be. I don't even know if that's like a certainty. That's something that, you know, I definitely aim for. That's something that we strive. That's something that, you know, we still consider a reality.' While in the Philippines, EJ also spent time at the EJ Obiena Pole Vault Facility in Ilocos, which recently hosted the pole vault event at the Palarong Pambansa. For the first time, the national games included a women's pole vault category—something EJ is especially proud of. 'And I think that's a big step, that's a huge step for Philippine sport because that means we're going to have high schoolers, women, that will be training for pole vault. Therefore, we would have now athletes coming in to universities that have already a background in pole vault.' From a young boy copying his father's vaults to becoming Asia's pole vault king, EJ Obiena's journey is a story of legacy, resilience, and heart. And with every leap, he continues to inspire a nation—one vault at a time. — BM, GMA Integrated News
The Sun
4 days ago
- The Sun
Woman crawls out of drain, smiles — leaves crowd stunned
IN a scene straight out of a horror film, a young woman stunned pedestrians and motorists in Makati City on May 26 when she emerged from a storm drain, covered in dirt and dressed in a soiled outfit. The surreal moment, captured by street photographer William (@iammrthirty on Instagram), has since gone viral across social media. The incident occurred around 5pm at a busy street corner in Manila's financial district. According to William, the woman crawled out of a wide storm drain wearing a dirty dress and denim shorts, her hair tangled and streaked with grime. 'She ran past me, the military guy in pursuit. A few pedestrians, motorcyclists, and even the traffic enforcer just stood there—stunned, confused, maybe even a little amused,' he recalled. His photos show the woman smiling before dashing away, followed by a man in a military-style uniform. Shared by GMA News and widely circulated on Instagram, YouTube and Facebook, the images have amassed nearly two million views within days. When William revisited the location later, he discovered local authorities had begun repaving the area. Despite the repair efforts, questions lingered about the origin of the canal. Describing the canal as 'almost as big as some rental rooms in the city,' William noted a pipe large enough for a person to crawl through. Local officials admitted they were uncertain where the pipe beneath the catch basin led, raising concerns about the extent of Makati's underground labyrinth. City officials suspect the woman could be among the many homeless individuals seeking refuge in Metro Manila's hidden underground networks. 'These streets carry stories we rarely acknowledge. There are people literally living in the cracks of this city,' William reflected. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) later confirmed the woman, identified only as 'Bibe,' was located and brought to their Pag-abot Processing Center in Pasay City. She is now under the department's care as they assess her situation.
The Sun
4 days ago
- The Sun
Woman crawls out of drain, smiles — leaves crowd stunned and internet shook
IN a scene straight out of a horror film, a young woman stunned pedestrians and motorists in Makati City on May 26 when she emerged from a storm drain, covered in dirt and dressed in a soiled outfit. The surreal moment, captured by street photographer William (@iammrthirty on Instagram), has since gone viral across social media. The incident occurred around 5pm at a busy street corner in Manila's financial district. According to William, the woman crawled out of a wide storm drain wearing a dirty dress and denim shorts, her hair tangled and streaked with grime. 'She ran past me, the military guy in pursuit. A few pedestrians, motorcyclists, and even the traffic enforcer just stood there—stunned, confused, maybe even a little amused,' he recalled. His photos show the woman smiling before dashing away, followed by a man in a military-style uniform. Shared by GMA News and widely circulated on Instagram, YouTube and Facebook, the images have amassed nearly two million views within days. When William revisited the location later, he discovered local authorities had begun repaving the area. Despite the repair efforts, questions lingered about the origin of the canal. Describing the canal as 'almost as big as some rental rooms in the city,' William noted a pipe large enough for a person to crawl through. Local officials admitted they were uncertain where the pipe beneath the catch basin led, raising concerns about the extent of Makati's underground labyrinth. City officials suspect the woman could be among the many homeless individuals seeking refuge in Metro Manila's hidden underground networks. 'These streets carry stories we rarely acknowledge. There are people literally living in the cracks of this city,' William reflected. The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) later confirmed the woman, identified only as 'Bibe,' was located and brought to their Pag-abot Processing Center in Pasay City. She is now under the department's care as they assess her situation.
GMA Network
6 days ago
- GMA Network
2 dead as truck plows into vehicles in Batasan-San Mateo Road
Two people died after a truck plowed into several vehicles along the Batasan-San Mateo Road in Quezon City (Photo from GMA News post) Two people died after a truck plowed into several vehicles along the Batasan-San Mateo Road in Quezon City, James Agustin of GMA Integrated News reported. The incident happened at around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday as the truck was traversing the road leading to Rizal province. Two motorcycles, a car and an AUV figured in the incident. According to the report, the 38-year-old truck driver said he felt the brake was loose, which made him lose control of the vehicle. The driver is now in the custody of the police. —LDF, GMA Integrated News
The Star
7 days ago
- The Star
In macabre street scene, woman in the Philippines crawls out of storm drain
A street photographer taking photos of the woman crawling out of a storm drain in Manila's main financial district. - IAMMRTHIRTY/ INSTAGRAM MANILA: A woman was seen crawling out of a storm drain on a busy street in Manila's main financial district in a scene straight out of a horror movie about a deep well-dwelling, spectral serial killer. Images that have gone viral in the Philippines show a lithe, young woman pulling herself out of the drain at around 5pm on Monday (May 2) at a street corner in Makati city. Her dress and denim shorts were caked with grime, and her hair was long, unwashed and streaked with dirt and dried leaves. As she made her way out of the drain, her head turned to the man taking her photos. She smiled and, after crawling out of the hole, ran towards him as a motorist wearing a military-style uniform chased her. 'She ran past me, the military guy in pursuit. A few pedestrians, motorcyclists, and even the traffic enforcer, just stood there, stunned, confused, maybe even a little amused,' William, who posted the woman's photos on his Instagram account under the name iammrthirty, told the online magazine site He declined to give his full name. His photos have been seen by close to two million viewers on YouTube and Facebook when they were picked up by local TV network GMA News. William, an amateur street photographer, said the hole the woman crawled out of was wider than the typically narrow storm drain. 'The catch area of the canal was relatively spacious (almost as big as some rooms for rent in the city)… Even closer, you could see a pipe on the bottom of the catch, a pipe big enough for humans to crawl through,' he told He said he went back a day later and saw city officials and security guards repaving the street corner where the storm drain was. He said they told him they did not know where the pipe where the woman hid leads to. The city officials said they have seen vagrants and street dwellers taking shelter in sewer tunnels near creeks, and the woman may have been part of this largely unseen, often ignored cohort. There are over three million homeless people across Metro Manila – a sprawling metropolis of 16 cities with a combined population of some 14 million. They live in shanties, makeshift pushcarts colloquially known as 'kariton', and wherever they can find shelter: by the side of the road, in cemeteries, and apparently in storm drains and sewage tunnels. The Borgen Project – a US-based non-profit – said extreme poverty, domestic violence, human trafficking and natural disasters are the usual push-factors behind homelessness in the Philippines. Women and children who are homeless are particularly vulnerable to becoming victims of battery, domestic abuse, trafficking or exploitation, it said. William, the street photographer, said the images he took are 'a reminder that Makati's streets hold more stories than we sometimes care to see - and that behind the high rises and the hustle, there are people who live between the cracks - literally'. - The Straits Times/ANN
