POLE vault star Ernest John Obiena will auction off his gold-medal-winning spikes to raise money for children back home in the Philippines who practise in a sawdust pit.

World-ranked no. 3 Obiena took his third consecutive gold at the SEA Games in Phnom Penh on Monday.

Clearing 5.65m, he broke his own Games record.

Afterwards, the Paris Olympics-bound 27-year-old told reporters he had seen a video of a child pole vaulter in the Philippines using sawdust to land in.

“Anyone who’s listening: it’s up for grabs,” he said, brandishing the pink-and-orange sports shoes.

“All money, all proceeds, will go to buying a new pole vault pit or a second-hand pole vault pit,” he added.

“If we can’t get actual size then we’ll get something – just not sawdust.”

The shoes could well increase in value over the next year or so, with Obiena in strong contention for a podium finish at Paris 2024. – AFP, May 10, 2023.