MANILA, Philippines – Eldrew Yulo could not have ended the year any better as he completed a golden sweep in the Chiu Wai Chung Cup in Hong Kong to highlight the Philippines’ massive 25-medal haul.
Yulo captured eight gold medals in the junior division, showing the way in the team all-around and ruling the individual all-around, floor exercise, vault, parallel bars, horizontal bar, pommel horse, and still rings.
Only 16 years old, Yulo is seen as the next great Filipino gymnastics prospect after his older brother Carlos won two gold medals in the Paris Olympics in August.
It has been an eventful year for the younger Yulo as he clinched the junior vault gold in the Men’s Artistic Gymnastics Asian Championships in Uzbekistan in May.
Yulo then took home four golds (individual all-around, floor exercise, vault, and still rings) and two silvers (team all-around and parallel bars) from the JRC Artistic Gymnastics Stars Championships in Thailand in November.
Over at the senior level, the Philippines also topped the team all-around courtesy of Juancho Miguel Besana, Justine Ace de Leon, John Matthew Vergara, Jhon Romeo Santillan, and Jan Gwynn Timbang.
The quintet won individual medals as well, with Besana bagging golds in individual all-around, floor exercise, and pommel horse, silvers in still rings, parallel bars, and vault, and a bronze in horizontal bar.
De Leon struck still rings and parallel bars golds on top of a vault bronze, Vergara nailed a horizontal bar silver and a parallel bars bronze, while Santillan and Timbang copped silver in floor exercise and pommel horse, respectively.
Meanwhile, Hillarion Palles III snagged pommel horse and parallel bars bronzes in the junior class.
The Philippines won 14 golds in total to go with six silvers and five bronzes.
Aldrin Castañeda, who coached the older Yulo in the Olympics, guided the senior team, while Reyland Capellan mentored the junior squad. – Rappler.com
