Carlos Yulo has been a champion at every level.
However, in his Olympic debut three years ago in Tokyo, he experienced disaster.
A few years prior to the pandemic-stricken Games in Japan, Yulo had won the world championship in floor exercise.
But in Tokyo, the 4-foot-11 dynamo had a disastrous all-around run, finishing in 47th place. Although he finished sixth in the vault event, it was not the goal.
“Palagi kong sinasabi, experience, experience,” he recalled to One Sports.
Yulo had to rebuild himself after Tokyo.
He replaced Japanese head coach Munehiro Kugimiya with his first mentor, Aldrin Castañeda.
He also focused on himself, shutting out distractions from his affairs off the mat.
As expected, he won two golds in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia. But it was in the 2024 Asian Championships where he truly shone, winning three titles – the all-around, floor exercise, and vault.
The Olympics, however, is a different animal.
“Nag-focus lang ako sa anong gagawin ko. Nagdasal po talaga ako. Hindi ako pinatulog nito ng dalawang araw ng maigi,” he admitted.
“Palagi akong kinakabahan.”
In the all-around, he qualified for the final after placing ninth but ended up 12th – still an improvement from Tokyo.
That rise gave him confidence that he could do it.
In the floor exercise final, he delivered a routine for the ages. Save for a minor wobble – which was saved by divine intervention according to him – it was the perfect routine.
(C) FIG
“Muntik pa po ako malaglag pero thank you Lord talaga, pinrotektahan niyo ko at na-save ko yun. Maganda yung mga landings ko ng mga sumunod,” he recalled.
His near-flawless routine netted a 15.0, largely due to the 6.6 execution score.
“Hindi yun yung perfect competition pero ito yung perfect moment para sa akin,” he expressed.
The 24-year-old has now won at all levels – from the Palarong Pambansa to the SEA Games to the Asian Games to the World Championships, and now the Olympics.
The Olympic gold was the culmination of everything he had gone through.
(C) FIG
“Sobrang nakaka-overwhelm yung ganoong experience. Pero ito yung experience na tatak talaga sa puso ko at sa buong Pilipinas,” he said.
“Really grateful na hindi ako sumuko sa challenges at nag-show up ako and mayroon akong resulta na nakuha. Siyempre, hindi lang ako mag-isa na nakakuha nito. Lahat ng resulta ko ngayon, may mga taong tumulong sa akin, lalo na si Ma’am Cynthia (Carrion),” he continued.
But there’s one more gold to be bagged for Yulo – the vault event. It’s an event dominated by Ukrainians and the British.
Yulo knows that this mountain will be a tough climb. And he is looking to rekindle the magic of 2021 by ruling this exercise once more.
“Going to do the same. Have fun and hope for the best.”
