Judging his performance in the recent World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, gymnast Carlos Yulo stands to win at least five gold medals in the coming SEA Games.
If lucky enough – not to mention the all-out support of the Philippine Sports Commission – the 4-foot-11 Yulo looks capable of sweeping all seven gold medals at stake in the biennial meet which the country will be hosting starting late next month.
Gymnastics Association of the Philippines secretary general Bettina Pou said Yulo’s mission is quite tough but she believes the 19-year-old Yulo has what it takes to dominate his SEA Games rivals.
“His performance in the world championships was very impressive. If luck rolls his way, he can win all seven gold medals in men’s gymnastics,” said Pou.
Last Sunday, Yulo mesmerized his global audience with a near-flawless performance to win the floor exercise gold medal.
It was a colossal and historic feat for the diminutive athlete, and fittingly, he will receive P1 million for that from the PSC.
PSC Chairman William “Butch” Ramirez has vowed to give Yulo all the support he needs, including the formation of a team of physiotherapist, sports nutritionist and sports psychologist to monitor his buildup for the SEA Games and the Tokyo Olympics next year.
“The PSC has been supporting the training of Caloy in Japan for the past couple of years. We’re planning to further increase that level of support because we believe that he has what it takes to make us proud in the SEA Games and the Olympics next year,” said Ramirez.
Pou said she expects Yulo to work harder on further improving his performance in pommel horse and parallel bars – events where the Vietnamese are traditionally strong.
Other events to be contested apart from all around and floor exercise are pommel horse, still rings, vault and horizontal bar.
“The Vietnamese perform well in those apparatuses. We don’t want to give them a chance,” said Pou, adding that they won’t pressure the Filipino dynamo as he heads to the 11-nation conclave.
“While we’re hoping for a sweep, we won’t pressure him to go for it. All we want is for him to enjoy what he’s doing and have fun competing. We would tell Caloy to give the best he can and the victory would definitely follow.”
After SEA Games, Yulo resumes his training in Japan for next year’s Tokyo Games.
With Japan as his second home, Yulo hopes to rise and deliver the first Olympic gold for the country. (REY C. LACHICA)
