MANILA – Filipino gymnast Carlos Edriel Yulo created history after bagging a bronze medal in the 2018 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships at the Aspire Dome in Doha, Qatar.
The 18-year-old Yulo placed this in the men’s floor exercise final with 14.600 points Friday night – handing the Philippines its first-ever medal in the international gymnastics competition.
Finishing ahead of Yulo were Artur Dalaloyan of Russia who garnered 14.900 points for the gold medal and former world champion Kenzo Shirai of Japan with 14.866 points for the silver medal.
Yulo gave credit to his two-year training in Japan. “There was a lot of good gymnasts, and my coach was also Japanese, so it’s kind of the same program as theirs,” he said after the match.
“This is just the beginning of my career because I plan to be one of the best ever to compete in this sport,” he added. “First, I want to go to the Olympics. Second, I want to be a good gymnast. That’s all.”
Prior to the medal finish of Yulo, the Philippines never won a medal or reached the final of the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships.
Before winning the bronze medal, Yulo placed fourth in the qualifying round after landing on 23rd place out of 24 in the all-around final as he struggled in three events, particularly in the horizontal bar./PN
