Yulo advances to vault, floor finals in world gymnastics tilt

Filipino gymnastics Olympian Carlos Yulo secured spots in both the vault and floor exercise finals of the 53rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships at the Indonesia Arena in Jakarta on Oct. 21.

The two-time world champion and reigning Olympic double-gold medalist delivered another strong performance, finishing first in vault with an average of 14.750 and second in floor exercise with 14.566.

Yulo was the only Filipino gymnast to qualify for the final round after his teammates Juancho Miguel Besana, John Ivan Cruz, and Justine Ace de Leon fell short of advancing. 

None of the Filipino gymnasts in the women’s division qualified for the final rounds, with Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo, Elaiza Yulo, and Haylee Garcia competing for various categories earlier in the week.

The 25-year-old from Manila continues to solidify his place among the sport’s elite. 

He previously won gold in both vault and floor exercise at the 2024 Paris Olympics, becoming the first Filipino gymnast to claim two Olympic gold medals.

Yulo competed only in the vault and floor events to manage a minor wrist injury and maintain peak form for the finals, which are scheduled for Friday, Oct. 25. The men’s all-around final is set for Wednesday, Oct. 22.

He now looks to add to his growing collection of medals, which includes world titles in floor exercise from Stuttgart in 2019 and vault from Kitakyushu in 2021, along with two silver and two bronze finishes in past world meets.