Two-time Olympic champion Carlos Yulo made a strong start to his 20th Asian Games campaign on Monday in Nagoya, Japan, topping the floor exercise in Subdivision 1 of the men’s artistic gymnastics qualification round.
Yulo posted a 14.600 on the floor exercise to lead the event, although the Filipino star encountered difficulties in some of his other apparatus, particularly the vault and horizontal bar.
“Hindi siya lumabas sa preparation na gusto ko… Ang daming learnings din na puwede kong baunin sa mga susunod na araw,” he said.
The Filipino gymnast managed to recover on his second vault attempt, while his younger brother, Eldrew Yulo, produced higher marks than Carlos in both the vault and horizontal bar.
After the completion of Subdivision 1, the Yulo brothers occupied the top two positions in the men’s individual all-around standings.
Carlos also turned to his younger brother for advice, particularly regarding his horizontal bar routine.
(C) POC Media Group
“Hindi ko kayang gawin yung ginagawa niya sa high bar. Nagtatanong po ako sa kanya… Yung feeling and yung technique,” Carlos said.
For Eldrew, receiving a request for advice from his two-time Olympic champion brother was an unfamiliar experience, since he’s usually the one seeking guidance from Carlos.
Also representing the Philippines in the qualification round were Miguel Besana, Zachary Nunez, and Ace de Leon.
Despite their strong position after Subdivision 1, Carlos and Eldrew still had to wait for the conclusion of Subdivision 2 before their places in the finals could be determined. The second subdivision featured gymnasts from host Japan, China, Chinese Taipei, South Korea, and Kazakhstan.
An Asian Games gold medal remains one of the major honors missing from Carlos’ collection, but the Filipino remains in contention as the competition progresses.
“May finals pa, may chance pa, may chance tayo na makapag-medal,” Yulo said.
