Yulo enjoys GAP’s full support

The Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP) is backing Carlos Yulo to bounce back from his eighth-place finish in the men’s floor exercise final in the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

In a message to DAILY TRIBUNE, GAP president Cynthia Carrion expressed confidence that the 26-year-old gymnast could recover from his mistakes as he defended his men’s vault title at press time.

Yulo scored 13.233 points in the floor exercise final last Saturday, missing the podium as he continued his quest to reclaim the world title he last won in Stuttgart, Germany, in 2019.

“The important people are helping us. Let’s see how he does tomorrow in the vault,” Carrion said.

Yulo faces a tough field in the vault final, including Filipino-British gymnast Jake Jarman, 2023 world champion Artur Davtyan of Armenia, Nazar Chepurnyi of Ukraine and former junior world champion Arsenii Dukhno of Russia.

A victory would give Yulo his third world title in the vault, following his triumph in 2021 in Kitakyushu, Japan, and his title defense last year in Jakarta.

It would also provide a fitting finish to his 2026 campaign, highlighted by his gold-medal double in the floor exercise and vault at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.

With next year’s World Championships serving as a qualifying event for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Yulo is focused on improving his routines and learning from his performances in Rotterdam.

“Although it wasn’t a good performance, there are many lessons to learn. We have to move forward,” Yulo said.

“I’m just hoping I can do it safely and, hopefully, avoid injury. That’s the most important thing for me right now.”