Yulo guns for gold in floor exercise
STUTTGART – With his ticket to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics assured, Carlos Edriel Yulo will gun for gold in the floor exercise at the start of the apparatus finals on Saturday in the 49th FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships at the Hans Martin Schleyer Halle.
Yulo, whose stint here is funded by the Philippine Sports Commission, is seeking to surpass his bronze medal finish during his debut in the event in Doha, Qatar last year.
While the weather outside this hilly German city has been generally chilly, action inside the arena is expected to heat up featuring the top 24 finalists in both the men’s and women’s divisions, among them the celebrated American gymnast Simone Biles, who take to the floor at 4 p.m. (10 p.m. Manila time).
“Gusto ko po talaga maka-gold ngayon. Para sa aking pamilya at kay coach Mune,” said the soft-spoken athlete shortly after he qualified for the event in placing seventh overall in the apparatus with a high score of 14.633 points, higher than his bronze-medal score of 14.600 in Doha.
Coach Mune, of course, is none other than Japanese mentor Munehiro Kugimiya, who has been supervising Yulo’s training for over six years now and fashioned the Pinoy gymnast into the world-class athlete that he is at present.
The Gymnastics Association of the Philippines protégé showed what it takes to be on top of his favorite event in securing the gold medal in the opening leg of the FIG Individual Apparatus World Cup last January in Melbourne, Australia.