Japanese training keys Eldrew improvement

The Japanese brand of gymnastics that made Carlos Yulo the accomplished Filipino Olympian is the same program that his younger brother — Eldrew — is using to soar to stardom.

Eldrew told DAILY TRIBUNE that the same Japanese precision, discipline and strategy is what Munehiro Kugimiya is applying to help him reach the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.

In fact, Kugimiya is teaching him new skills that will make him competitive for the 3rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics Junior World Championships at the Newport World Resorts in Pasay City.

“There will be a lot of skills that will be added. I’m still not consistent with it but I am trying,” said Yulo, who flew to Nagoya, Japan to hook up with Kugimiya last Sunday.

“With a lot of skills to be added, we are still forming a routine around it.”

Japan was the original choice of the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP) to sharpen the skills of the Yulo brothers. Yulo moved to Tokyo with Kugimiya in 2016, where he hone his craft at the prestigious Ajinomoto National Training Center.

Under Kugimiya’s tutelage, Carlos became a two-time world champion in the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in 2019 and 2021. He also emerged as a 10-time gold medalist in the Asian Championships and won nine golds in the Southeast Asian Games.

Yulo even got a degree in Literature from Teikyo University in 2022 while he was training in Japan.

When they parted ways in 2023 due to personal reasons, Carlos still used Kugimiya’s game plan en route to winning two gold medals in the Paris Olympics.

“We just continued doing what we’re doing, motivating everybody and then making sure that we’re doing the right thing and having a team for full support,” GAP president Cynthia Carrion said.

To express his gratitude to the Japanese, Yulo even went back to Japan last October to personally thank the people who helped him in his journey from an up-and-coming gymnast to a world-class athlete.

Now, his younger brother hopes that he will be able to come out victorious in the Junior World Championships when he trains under the Japanese mentor.

“I hope I can make a good performance because I want to be one of the best junior gymnasts in the world. This is my major international competition this year, and, with the help of God, I want to show the world my best,” Eldrew said.

“This is going to be my first and last time competing in the world juniors. Next year I will be competing as a senior, so there is a bit of pressure.”