He wants another shot at Olympic glory next year.
Carlos Yulo, widely considered as the golden boy of Philippine gymnastics, will not be competing in the upcoming Asian Games, to be held from September 23 to October 8 at Hangzhou, China.
Yulo begged off from the rescheduled Asian Games, originally set for last year, to focus instead on the 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, which will be held from September 29 to October 8 at Antwerp, Belgium.
With the two events overlapping, Yulo was pretty much left with no choice but choose the world championships, which also serve as an Olympic qualifier. A good showing in Antwerp will help the 22-year-old’s bid to qualify for the Paris Olympics next year — something Yulo has been aiming for since his heartbreaking Tokyo stint.
This development means the Philippines will be missing out on what will likely be several podium finishes, as the affable Manileño has proven to be one of the best gymnasts in the world. In fact, Yulo has previously won 3 gold medals in the Asian Championships already, plus 2 more in the world championships and 7 in the Southeast Asian Games. Those are on top of the 12 silver and 6 bronze medals he has won in different international competitions through the years.
Yulo, though, appears to be a lock for the Phnom Penh Southeast Asian Games scheduled on May 5–17, where he is favored to replicate, if not surpass, his five-gold haul in last year’s Hanoi Southeast Asian games.