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| It's an unprecedented second gold for Caloy, and a source of pride and joy for the country |
As the announcer put it, the first gold was a dream, the second was a fairy tale.
Surmounting big
odds, 24-year-old Carlos Edriel Yulo won another gold medal for the Philippines
at the Paris Olympic 2024 for the second day in a row, dominating the men’s vault
final late on Sunday night. He secured his slot in the finals after placing
sixth in the qualifying round.
Yulo won his
first gold in the men’s floor exercise only the previous night.
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| PINDUTIN DITO |
His back-to-back
victory raised the country’s gold medal haul in the Olympics from the one won
by weightlifter Hidylin Diaz in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, to three practically overnight.
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| I owe this to the One above, says Caloy |
Yulo also has the distinction of being the first Filipino to win multiple golds in the world’s premier sports meet.
His first vault
was a picture of power, grace and artistry, earning for himself a score of
15.433, the highest given in the competition.
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| Pindutin para sa detalye |
A slightly
imperfect landing caused his score in his second vault to dip a bit, giving
him a score of 14.800, but it was still enough to earn him the top place on the
podium, with an average score of 15.116.
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| The Philippine flag was raised and the national anthem played for only the 3rd time in Olympic history |
Armenia’s Artur Davtyan who won the silver medal in the Tokyo Olympics, again took the second slot after finishing his routine with an average score of 14.966. Britain’s Harry Hepworth, whose score of 14.949 initially put him in the lead, took bronze.
The Philippines
is now assured of four medals in the Paris Olympics, with female boxers Nesthy
Petecio and Aira Villegas each assured of at least a bronze medal after their
winning bouts also on Sunday.
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| Basahin ang detalye! |
This ties up the
number of medals won by the Philippines in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in
2021), and boosted its haul highlighted by Yulo’s two gold wins.
Since it began taking part in the Olympics in 1924, the Philippines has won a total of 15 medals, eight of which were from the two immediate past quadrennial games.
After winning his first gold medal, Yulo was assured of huge rewards from both the Philippine government and various private enterprises.
Under a law passed in 2015, an Olympic gold medalist is to be rewarded with a “financial incentive” of P10 million, while the House of Representatives has pledged to give an additional P3 million.
The athlete will also receive an Olympic Gold Medal of Valor from the Philippine Sports Commission, as well as a house and lot. In addition, a private developer has pledged to give him a condominium unit, like what Hidylin Diaz received after her win three years ago.
What is unclear if the rewards will be doubled now that Yulo has won two gold medals.
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