MANILA, Philippines – Carlos Yulo waited three years to redeem himself in his signature event in the Olympics.
And Yulo did it in historic fashion as he captured the gold medal in the men’s artistic gymnastics floor exercise final in the Paris Games at the Bercy Arena on Saturday, August 3.
Yulo posted 15.000 points to dethrone Israel’s Artem Dolgopyat and become the Philippines’ second Olympic champion since weightlifting ace Hidilyn Diaz ended a near century-long golden drought in the previous Tokyo Games.
Dolgopyat settled for silver with 14.966 points, while top qualifier Jake Jarman of Great Britain bagged bronze with 14.933 points.
Yulo burst into tears after securing the victory that gave the country its first medal in Olympic gymnastics as he bounced back from a disappointing campaign in the Tokyo Games where he failed to reach the floor exercise final.
The third to perform in the eight-man finale, Yulo needed a flawless performance after Dolgopyat and Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Rayderley Zapata (14.333) set the bar high early.
Seizing the moment, Yulo did not disappoint as he executed every skill with precision, ending his routine with a perfect landing that made him the only male gymnast in this Olympics to reach the 15-point mark in the apparatus.
Anticipation for celebration swelled as each of the remaining finalists fell short of Yulo, and when no one hit a better mark, the nation erupted in delight.
Yulo completed his floor exercise collection that includes titles from the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships, and Southeast Asian Games.
His victory in Paris came five years after he won his first world title in floor exercise – a feat that propelled Yulo to national stardom.
Now, the pride of Malate, Manila has earned his place in Philippine sports pantheon, becoming just the 13th Filipino to win an Olympic medal.
Ukraine’s Illia Kovtun finished fourth with 14.533 followed by Kazakhstan’s Milad Karimi (14.500) at fifth, Great Britain’s Luke White House (14.466) at sixth, Zapata at seventh, and China’s Zhang Boheng (13.933) at eighth.
Yulo, though, is far from done as he eyes another golden performance in his other pet event when he competes in the vault final on Sunday, August 4. – Rappler.com
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