GAP caps banner year with plum

It was a year like no other for the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP).

The 62-year-old federation was responsible for giving the country a truly memorable year behind the first ever double gold of Carlos Yulo in the Paris Olympics.

The 24-year-old gymnast from Leveriza, Manila emerged winner in his two pet events — the men’s vault and floor exercise — for the Philippines’ historic first pair of gold medals in a single Olympic participation.

Philippine gymnastics in Paris though, didn’t only end with Yulo’s golden feat.

History was made when the stunning trio of Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo and Levi Jung-Ruivivar also represented the country in the 33rd edition of the Summer Games.

It marked the first time in 60 years Filipina gymnasts participated in the quadrennial showcase since Evelyn Magluyan and Maria Luisa Floro wore the country’s tri-colors in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

For a remarkable 2024 that saw its years of nurturing talent finally bore into fruition, GAP is the hands down choice as the National Sports Association of the Year in the coming San Miguel Corporation-Philippine Sportswriters Association (SMC-PSA) Awards Night at the grand ballroom of the Manila Hotel.

Together with GAP, Yulo takes centerstage in the 27 January proceedings co-presented by ArenaPlus, MediaQuest and Cignal as the well-deserved winner of the Athlete of the Year honor.

This is the first time the gymnastics federation under the loving care of its president Cynthia Carrion, is being recognized as NSA of the Year by the oldest media organization in the Philippines first established in 1949 and currently headed by The Philippine Star sports editor Nelson Beltran.

Previous recipients of the award include the Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines, Jiu Jitsu Federation of the Philippines, Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association, Philippine Taekwondo Association, among others.

The traditional Awards Night has the Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, PLDT/Smart, Senator Bong Go, MILO and Januarius Holdings as major sponsors, and with the backing of the PBA, PVL, Akari, Rain or Shine, AcroCity and 1-Pacman Partylist.

Gymnastics not only casts its shadow in the country’s Olympic campaign.

Yulo was just as dominant in the continental campaign, collaring four golds in the Men’s Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan while copping a gold and silver in the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Cup Series in Qatar, where Ruivivar also bagged a silver as the two Filipinos earned tickets to the Paris Olympics.

Malabuyo struck a gold and a bronze in the Women’s Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships, also in Uzbekistan, to formalize her first ever Olympic stint.

Another Yulo in Karl Eldrew made his presence felt as well, bagging the gold in the juniors division of the same Tashkent tournament.

The younger brother of Carlos Yulo likewise won golds in the Pacific Rim Championship in Cali, Colombia, and in the Chiu Wai Chung Cup in Hong Kong just before 2024 ended.