Fall mars Yulo’s golden campaign but PH star rises to challenge

Carlos Yulo nets another victory in preparation for the World Championships.—SHERWIN VARDELEON

Doing a series of 360-degree revolutions, Carlos Edriel Yulo released the bar and somersaulted into the air only to lose grip of the horizontal rod on his way down, hitting the deck hard in the process.

The fall was heavy, and maybe even career-threatening, but Yulo is no ordinary athlete.

“These kind of things makes me want to improve and grow even more. It’s funny because gymnastics is not always fun and it’s not always about winning in the competition,’’ Yulo posted on his Instagram account following his scary fall from the high bar.

Yulo hit his face on the floor, the loud thud reverberating throughout the arena during the 55th All-Japan Seniors Championship over the weekend, where the Filipino world champion captured a men’s artistic gymnastics gold medal in the floor exercise.

“It’s all about standing up after that fall. To give your all till the dismount, to not lose yourself in everyday training. I mean this is definitely not easy, but this is my lifestyle,’’ said Yulo, who also claimed a bronze medal in the vault and silver in the team competition.

Yulo is the country’s finest gymnast, previously winning the world titles in floor exercise and vault.

According to his Japanese coach, Munehiro Kugimiya, Yulo wasn’t able to see action in the other apparatuses after hurting his finger.

“This is another great experience and I definitely learned a lot in this tournament and I’m really grateful for that,’’ said Yulo after wrapping up the competition, which is part of his buildup for the world championships next month.

“I’m going to use that as a fuel for my progression and for my next competitions,’’ added the 22-year-old, Tokyo-based fireball.

Yulo will defend his title in the vault in the world meet on Oct. 29 to Nov. 6 in Liverpool, England. He also claimed a silver in the parallel bars in the worlds last year.

Kugimiya said before heading to Liverpool, Yulo will set up a training camp in Paris where the 2024 Olympics Games will be held.

It also happens to be the site where Yulo has been prepping all along to finally accomplish a botched mission of reaching the medal podium back in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. INQ

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