Yulo Dazzles With a Double Gold!

Carlos Yulo, our diminutive gymnast from Malate, Manila scored a dazzling double gold medal haul to put the Philippines in the Olympic medal tally board in Paris. Following the country’s glorious performance in the Tokyo Olympics where the Philippine team garnered its first-ever gold medal courtesy of weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz, plus 2 silver and 1 bronze medals, Caloy’s double-gold feat broke that recent sporting record with a big bang! Caloy’s dazzling double, coupled with 2 more sure medals from the boxing team, assures us that the Paris haul will be even far greater than the Tokyo record-breaker.

The 24-year old Caloy Yulo captured the gold medals in Men’s Floor Exercise and the Men’s Vault, two of Artistic Gymnastics’ most watched events. His twin victories makes him one of world gymnastics’ most popular figures today. Here in the Philippines, his 2-gold haul easily makes him our Olympic GOAT (Greatest Of All Time)!

Caloy’s journey to the top was not an easy one. In fact, Caloy was lucky in that he was living in Malate, which was quite close to the Rizal Memorial Stadium. There are very few facilities in the country that can offer the equipment and the basic gymnastics training; and Rizal Memorial, being the home of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), was one of them. It was in the mid-2000s that the venerable coach, Lope Lim, decided to provide free gymnastics training to street kids. And Caloy Yulo would become his biggest accidental find in this noble endeavor.

In 2007, at the tender age of 7 years old, Caloy was taken by his grandfather to join the free gymnastics training at the Rizal Memorial, seeing that he was so active and full of energy as a young tyke. The rest is history. His grandfather simply wanted to find an outlet for his excess energy; and 16 years later, he would come home the greatest Olympian the country has ever produced!

But it has certainly been a long, arduous journey. In 2017, after garnering so many local gymnastics accolades in the country, he was offered a scholarship in Tokyo, Japan. There, he trained under renowned coach Munehiro Kugimiya as part of a scheme supported by the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines, and the Japan Gymnastics Association. The project, introduced by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), falls under the ‘Olympic Solidarity’ programme. But it was coach Munehiro’s singular effort to find sponsors to make things happen – even to the point of housing Caloy in his own home – that would be the catalyst to his development not just as a gymnast, but more so as a person.

At first, Caloy was hesitant to go, but his mom urged him to take the rare but rare opportunity to train in far-away Japan. He would later overcome his shyness, imbibe the discipline, and learn to be a steel-willed competitor under coach Munehiro. The training environment in Japan would prove to be the game-changer, paving the way to his future glorious results.

But his path to victory was certainly not a bed of roses. He suffered so many different injuries; from a sprained ankle in training that hampered him in the 2017 Asian Junior Championships in Thailand; a chest injury which barred him from competing at the 2019 World Cup event in Azerbaijan; a left elbow injury which prevented him to join the all-around competition at the 2021 World Championships in Japan; an injured finger which hampered him in the 2022 All Japan Seniors Championship; to a strained left ankle in 2023 which forced him to miss the 2023 World Cup in Egypt. These are injuries that are a normal fare for gymnasts as they strive to perform exercises with higher degrees of difficulty. And Caloy suffered through his fair share of aches and pains as well.

On top of that, Caloy has had to endure personal challenges as well. He would part ways with his Japanese coach and father-figure after a few years. As a result, Caloy had to come back home to the Philippines, to be coached now by a local gymnastics veteran in coach Allen Aldrin Castaneda. Aside from that, he and his mom have an unfortunate strained relationship that is well-known. Despite these personal trials, Caloy focused on the job at hand, never allowing these hiccups to cloud his thoughts. He has learned to relax and be composed, particularly during  competitions.

Caloy’s Paris Olympic adventure has ended. But it has paved the way to economic freedom, it has opened doors to new adventures and new opportunities, and finally, it has brought him personal fame and glory. His story will definitely not end with the Olympics. Hopefully, his recent success in the Olympics will be just the start of more success stories ahead. Not just for him, but certainly for the hundreds and thousands of kids who will look up to him as an inspiration and model.

Here was a man who, despite the lack of height or heft, found a niche and built a name for himself. Here was a man who, despite the many trials and tears, willed himself with discipline and self-determination, to achieve success amidst overwhelming challenges. Together with last Olympics’ heroine, Hidilyn Diaz, Caloy has impressed on us all that we all can achieve our dreams, but only if we learn to sacrifice, to discipline ourselves, to work hard and dream big.

Thank you, Caloy, for this wonderful opportunity to cheer for our country. Thank you for helping develop that nationalism and sense of pride in our country. But most of all, thank you for the poignant lessons in discipline and determination you have imparted.

Cover Photo courtesy of YouTube. Other pics courtesy of Esquire Philippines, Inquirer.net, Preview.ph and the Manila Times. Video courtesy of OneSport.