FRUITLESS IN PARIS?: Sports Illustrated paints gloomy picture of Filipinos’ Olympic bid

A prestigious and well-respected American sports publication painted a gloomy picture of the Filipinos’ campaign in the Paris Olympics.

In a forecast done by New York-based Sports Illustrated (SI) on Wednesday, no Filipino athlete will be able to win a gold medal with gymnast Carlos Yulo being predicted to settle for silver and pole vaulter Ernest John Obiena taking home a bronze in the Summer Games that will formally kick off this Friday at Seine River.

The SI editorial board believes that the 24-year-old Yulo will fail to clinch the gold with Israeli powerhouse Artem Dolgopyat around.

Dolgopyat, after all, is the reigning Olympic champion who also won the gold medal in the floor exercise event of the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships last year in Antwerp.

Worse, Yulo wasn’t mentioned among the top three finishers in the men’s vault event with SI believing that Jake Jarman of Great Britain will win the gold, Nazar Chepurnyi of Ukraine clinching the silver medal and the eight-time FIG World Cup champion Artur Davtyan of Armenia bagging the bronze.

Yulo admitted that tough battles await him in the Summer Games.

“In the floor exercise, Dolgopyat is one of the strongest in floor exercise while Davtyan is a favorite in the vault,” said Yulo, who will kick off his campaign on Saturday at 9:30 p.m. (Manila time).

“There are also gymnasts from the United Kingdom that are good.”

Also entering the Summer Games as an underdog is Obiena.

According to SI, Obiena, the second-best pole vaulter in the world, is good for just a bronze medal with Swedish sensation Armand Duplantis taking the gold medal and American star Christopher Nilsen bagging the silver.

The SI prediction is backed by data as Obiena’s personal best is only 6.0 meters, which is way behind the 6.23-meter personal best of Duplantis.

Although Obiena had already beaten Duplantis a couple of times in the past, the Asian record-holder admitted that he is struggling with various physical issues heading into the Summer Games.

“Despite my best efforts at conditioning, fitness and discipline, I have been battling with various physical problems since April,” Obiena said in a lengthy social media post.

“I know and fully understand this can happen to athletes training at such intensity and no complaints — but why now!?”

Aside from Yulo and Obiena, the Filipinos have other favored bets like Olympic medalists Nesthy Petecio, Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial of boxing, United States-trained Emma Malabuyo, Aleah Finnegan and Levi Ruivivar of gymnastics and rising stars Vanessa Sarno, Elreen Ando and John Fabuar Ceniza of weightlifting.

But SI, which has a circulation of over 1.6 million, refused to mention them as among the athletes who will win a medal in the Summer Games.