Seven-year famine: Yulo shoots for ‘floor’ crown, aims to end long drought

Carlos Yulo looks to end a seven-year gold medal drought when he competes in the final of men’s floor exercise of the 54th FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships on Saturday in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Competition starts at 8 p.m. (Manila time) with the 26-year-old Filipino set to test his mettle against the world’s best in a bid to step on top of the medal podium since ruling the event in 2019 in Stuttgart, Germany that eventually became his launch pad as one of the sport’s rising stars.

Yulo showcased his medal potential after finishing second in the qualifying round with 14.500 points last week.

Former junior world champion Arsenii Dukhno of Russia topped the event with 14.700 while Artem Dolgopyat of Israel, Frederick Richard of the United States, and Jake Jarman of Great Britain rounded out the top five finishers with 14.300, 14.233 and 14.133 points, respectively.

Yulo admitted that aside from looking to snap a seven-year drought he is also prioritizing the safe execution of his routines to avoid getting injured that might jeopardize his stint in the final of vault apparatus on Sunday.

“I’m just hoping I can do it safely and, hopefully, avoid injury. That’s the most important thing for me right now,” said Yulo, who won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics in 2024, said.

“Things happen, and we learn. We had a couple mistakes, but I’m going to take it as a lesson. We’re always winning in a lesson, so there’s no need to be down.”

In an interview with International Gymnast Media, Yulo said he feels much better than he did during the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, where he also won two gold medals.

However, he acknowledged that the short preparation period affected his performance in Rotterdam.

“I’m happy that I’m complete and no injuries at all. The pain I was dealing with at the Asian Games is now gone,” Yulo said.

“Lack of preparation was really for me the main thing. That’s why I didn’t do really well on high bar and pommel horse, but overall I feel there is a lot of things to improve and look into.”

The World Championships have been very special for Yulo.

In fact, since conquering Stuttgart, Yulo became the sport’s latest sensation as he eventually collected gold medals in almost all international events from the Southeast Asian Games to the Asian Games, Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships and even the Olympics.

Now, he returns to the world stage not just to complete his mission but also to overcome a mix of established contenders and emerging talents in the event that he considers as his favorite.

Dukhno is tipped to emerge as a dangerous foe as he his makes his World Championships debut while Dolgopyat is determined to reclaim the title he won in 2023 in Antwerp.

Filipino-British gymnast Jarman, on the other hand, is also a prized contender as he defends the title he won in Jakarta last year.

The rest of the field includes three-time FIG World Cup gold medalist Yahor Sharamkou of Belarus, rising star Noam Berkovich of Israel and Doi Ryosuke of Japan, who is part of the group that won a gold medal in the men’s artistic team competition on top of his title in the men’s all-around event.