MANILA – Carlos Edriel Yulo made history by winning his second Olympic gold in Paris on Sunday (04 Aug 2024) claiming victory in the men’s gymnastics vault finals at Bercy Arena.
Following his floor exercise win on Saturday, Yulo is now the first Filipino male athlete to win multiple golds in a single Olympics.
Yulo’s near-perfect first vault scored 15.433 points, the highest of the night. His second vault earned 14.8 points, culminating in a total of 15.116, securing his gold medal and preventing a British 1-2 finish. Armenian Artur Davtyan took silver with an average score of 14.966, while Britain’s Harry Hepworth claimed bronze with 14.949 points.
The Philippines’ fourth medal in the Paris Olympics came shortly after boxer Nesthy Petecio secured at least a bronze in the women’s 57-kilogram category. Petecio dominated her quarterfinal match against China’s Xu Zichun, winning by unanimous decision. She will face Poland’s Julia Szeremeta in the semifinals.
The Philippines’ current four-medal count matches its total from the Tokyo Olympics. Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz, the country’s first gold medalist in Tokyo, congratulated Yulo on his achievement and expressed her pride in his hard work and dedication.
Philippine Olympic Committee president Abraham Tolentino celebrated the record-breaking success, while World No. 2 pole vaulter EJ Obiena and hurdlers John Cabang and Lauren Hoffman aim to add to the medal tally in their upcoming events in the next few days.
(ia/mnm)
