Karl Eldrew Yulo celebrates after winning gold in floor exercise in the Antalya leg of the FIG World Cup. Handout/Gymnastics Association of the Philippines
MANILA -- Filipino gymnast Karl Eldrew Yulo is determined to keep getting better after his breakthrough victory in the Antalya leg of the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Cup Series.
Yulo, 18, won his first gold at the senior level after ruling the floor exercise with a score of 14.100. He got the job done even while dealing with pain in both ankles.
"Actually I competed with my ankles hurting," Yulo told ABS-CBN News. "Nararamdaman na po ng paa ko na sumasakit, kumikirot siya every time tumatalon or nagla-land ako."
READ: PH's Eldrew Yulo wins floor exercise gold at FIG World Cup Antalya
Yulo did not make the podium in the previous World Cup stop in Baku, where he made his senior debut. For the teenager, the biggest change came not from his skills or his routine, but with his mindset.
"Wala naman po ako masyado binago. Siguro nasa mindset ko na," said Yulo, who finished sixth in floor exercise in Baku earlier in March. "Hindi po siya sa skills eh, kung paano mo siya maiisip, nasa mind mo. Kung paano mo malalampasan yung kaba o takot."
He is determined to keep improving, with Yulo acknowledging that he is far from his peak as an athlete.
"Ito pa lang 'yung lesson at learning part," he said.
Yulo has been training under national team coach Reynald Capellan, but Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP) President Cynthia Carrion said there are plans to send him to Japan. There, he will be trained by Japanese coach Munehiro Kugimiya, the former coach of his brother -- two-time Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo.
The goal is for Eldrew to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
"He has to be strong mentally. A strong mind, strong body," Carrion said of the younger Yulo.
"Uumpisahan ko po muna na maging better everyday, mag-grow everyday kahit paunti-unti," said Yulo. "Uumpisahan ko po muna doon bago mag-go big."
"Mas mapapatatag po ako at mas maraming matututunan from the Olympians kasi nakakausap ko rin sila," he also said. "Tinatatanong ko rin sila ano yung mga ginagawa nila. I’m taking their advice para ma-apply ko rin sa pag-compete."
Yulo will continue to compete in the World Cup series, with the next stop set in Cairo on April 3-6. -- report from Dyan Castillejo, ABS-CBN News
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