PARIS (Via PLDT Home) — Carlos Edriel Yulo buried the heartbreak of his past Olympic show with a performance that dazzled the entire Bercy Arena and uplifted the spirits of his weary nation as he captured the gold medal in the men’s floor exercise on Saturday at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The 24-year-old Filipino gymnast, who placed 11th in the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, where everyone expected him to win, delivered a flawless routine this time, culminating in a perfectly executed three-and-a-half twist dismount that earned him a score of 15.000 –and the gold.
“We are a really small country. A portion of our athletes are not that rich, not the same as the US or UK, so to be able to get a gold medal is really big and huge for us,” said Yulo.
After his flawless display that got him 6.600 from difficulty and 8.400 from execution, Yulo pumped both his fists, saluted the fans and touched his heart as a gesture of thanks to an adoring crowd that included his girlfriend Chloe San Jose.
Right there and then, he knew he delivered his best ever performance.
He added: “I dedicate this to the Filipino people, who have supported me and are having a hard time as well. I just want to say thank you for watching me, praying for me throughout the competition.”
Overcoming past inconsistencies, Yulo’s triumph marked a watershed moment for Philippine gymnastics.
Tomorrow, he shoots for his second gold in the Olympic Games where the country has never won in 97 years, until Hidilyn Diaz delivered one in the pandemic-hit Tokyo games in 2021.
Israel’s Artem Dolgopyat, the Tokyo 2020 champion, claimed the silver with a score of 14.966, while Great Britain’s Jake Jarman, a Fil-British expected to crowd Yulo for the gold, secured the bronze at 14.933.
Paalam narrowly defeated by Senior in quarterfinal bout
Meanwhile, boxer Carlo Paalam was unable to replicate his medal-winning performance from Tokyo four years ago, suffering a narrow 3-2 decision loss to Australia’s Charlie Senior in their 57kg quarterfinal bout at the North Paris Arena on Saturday night (Manila time).
Despite the six-inch height disadvantage, the 5’4” Paalam found some success in the first round. Employing a defensive strategy, he lured his taller opponent into creating openings, landing counterpunches that earned the approval of three judges against two.
However, the 5’10” Senior, making his debut in this competition, turned the tide in the second round. He leveraged his natural power and size advantage, relentlessly attacking Paalam, a Tokyo silver medalist in the lower 52kg division.
Senior’s aggressiveness continued into the third round, and although Paalam managed to land a few clean punches while backtracking, the judges ultimately awarded the win to Senior.
In the semifinals, Senior is set to face Abdumalik Khalolov of Uzbekistan, who had previously defeated Paalam in the Asian Games.
Khalolov advanced by winning his quarterfinal match against Spain’s Jose Quiles via unanimous decision. With Randy Caluag
