For the Filipino gymnast, this is more than just about representing the flag. This is about redemption.
Carlos Yulo was stunned.
At a loss for words following his disastrous performance in the men’s gymnastics floor exercise event of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the 21-year-old could only muster a series of “masakit po” to a small group of Filipino journalists who now had the unenviable task of writing why Yulo, the world champion in this event, finished a disappointing 44th.
There was a lot riding on Yulo in Tokyo. Aside from being the first Filipino gymnast to compete in the Olympics since the 1968 Mexico Games, he was a heavy favorite to medal in his pet event after topping it in the previous world championships. There were even hopes of a historic gold. Yet it all went down the drain following uncharacteristic errors that significantly pulled his overall score down.
A few days later, redemption appeared to be within reach. Yulo was in a good position to medal in the vault finals, but a -0.1 penalty in his first run nudged him out of the podium by a mere 0.017 of a point. Just like that, his Tokyo Olympics campaign was over, and he had no medal to show for it.
A journey that had begun roughly 14 years before had failed to come to its expected conclusion. Carlos Yulo would have to wait another three years for his next chance.
Those three years have passed, and Yulo, now 24, is just weeks away from his second Olympic Games. A series of solid performances between Tokyo and Paris — including golds in the Asian Championships and a recent gold in the Doha World Cup in different disciplines — have once again installed him as a medal hopeful.
Yet, if the Carlos Yulo of today, knowing what he knows now, could go back in time and give advice to the Carlos Yulo of 2021, what would he say?
“Siguro, marami na rin akong napagdaanan ngayon,” he told The GAME before briefly pausing. “Gusto ko lang sabihin na maging confident ka. Bigay mo yung buong ikaw. Huwag kang mahiya sa magiging performance mo. Mas lakihan mo yung movement mo.
“Parang maging ikaw, ipakita mo kung anong pinractice mo. Huwag kalimutan mag-enjoy.”
Manila boy
As a boy growing up in the city of Manila in the late aughts, Carlos Edriel Yulo certainly knew how to enjoy. Interestingly, though, he didn’t take to gymnastics right away. Instead, he initially gravitated towards a similar activity.
“Usong-uso kasi yung breakdance at that time, 2007,” he said.
Yulo and his friends would hang out at a playground near Leveriza Street in front of the Manila Zoo, where they would execute different moves.
One day, they met a guy who was very good at doing tumbling moves, and they asked him how he learned to do it.
“Gymnast pala siya, hindi namin alam,” Yulo recalled. “Ang alam lang namin, magaling siya mag-tumbling.
“And then, yung tropa niya nagsabi sa amin na ba’t hindi daw kami sumali ng gymnastics. Dinala kami ng lolo ko sa Rizal Memorial after niya sabihin yun. Doon nag-start yung mag-gymnastics.”
It wasn’t as simple as it sounded, though. Initially, Yulo and his friends were barred from entering the historic sports complex.
“Outsiders talaga. And, well, hindi kami pinapapasok. Kahit doon sa gate lang ng Rizal Memorial, hindi kami pinapapasok.”
Luckily, his lolo, Rodrigo Frisco, had a friend on the inside who found a way to get them into the complex, and they became regular fixtures there. However, getting into the gymnastics area itself provided a new challenge.
“Sa gymnastics, doon lang kami sa labas kasi bawal kami pumasok sa loob kapag walang payment. Kasi may kailangan na bayaran.”
Undeterred, Carlos and his friends would play a cat-and-mouse game with the security guards. Finally, one day, they were able to get the attention of then-GAP secretary-general Daniel Lopez, who gave them a chance to use the GAP facilities for free.
“Nakitaan po kami…dati si Mr. Lopez pa yung nag-hahandle sa gymnastics. Siya yung nag-ask kung gusto ba namin talaga mag-practice. And doon nagsimula lahat. Yung malibre ng practice, araw-araw.”
Lopez provided Yulo and his friends, all 17 of them, with free training clothes. Eventually, though, only two of them remained: he and his cousin Ivan Cruz, who recently won a gold medal at the Cambodia Southeast Asian Games.
At first, Yulo thought of gymnastics as nothing more than a hobby. That all changed in 2012, when he watched Japanese gymnast Kohei Uchimura win a gold and a silver at the London Olympics. Uchimura was barely 5’4”, yet he dominated the competition. It left an indelible mark on the 13-year-old Yulo, who stood just a shade below five feet.
“Doon ako na-inspire na sabi ko sa sarili ko na gusto ko rin makatungtong sa ganung larangan ng competition. Siya yung naging inspiration ko that time. Doon ko na-realize na kailangan kong maging seryoso sa gymnastics.”
Mind and body
Getting “serious” in gymnastics, as Carlos Yulo soon found out, requires extreme discipline, both physically and mentally. In some ways, it is a cruel sport, one that punishes you severely for the slightest mistake. One lapse in concentration, one misstep, one mistimed move could be the difference between Olympic glory and agonizing defeat.
His daily routine leaves little to no room for anything else except training mind and body to achieve perfection. He wakes up at around 7:00 a.m., prepares for the grind ahead, then heads off to the GAP training facility where he undergoes two three-hour practice sessions a day — one at 9:00 a.m. and the other at 2:00 p.m.
“Usually sa umaga, tatlong apparatus,” he explained. “Meron kasi kaming anim na apparatus sa gymnastics and sa men’s artistic. So, sa umaga, tatlong apparatus, and then sa hapon, tatlo ulit na apparatus.”
Yulo also follows a strict diet that allows him to fuel his four-foot-eleven frame without putting on extra poundage.
“During training, may iniinom akong protein powder na bigay din ng nutritionist kong si Coach Jeaneth (Aro), yung nag-aadvise sa akin ng mga kinakain ko din.”
Aro, who is with the Philippine delegation in Metz, France, has worked with elite Filipino athletes, including Hidilyn Diaz, Eumir Marcial, Carlo Paalam, Elreen Ando, Mark Magsayo, and Jerwin Ancajas.
“Madalas kasi, hindi ako nakakapag-ask sa kanya kung ano yung best na kainin,” Yulo said about working with Aro. “Pero before that, kasi nagsesend ako palagi sa kanya ng mga kinakain ko. And then natuto na din ako na ako yung mag-adjust talaga kung ano yung kinakain ko. And syempre, nagkukonsult pa din naman ako sa kanya sa lahat ng mga food na ini-intake ko.”
Although Aro doesn’t impose any dietary restrictions on him, Yulo says he generally avoids oily and sugary foods. As for the mental aspect of his training, he did consult regularly with a psychologist.
But ultimately, he feels he’s solely responsible for his mental health and toughness, a key part of his training as he seeks to avoid the mistakes he made in Tokyo.
“Gusto ko ako kasi yung makaka-experience talaga. Like, one-on-one sa sarili ko. I-figure out kung ano yung pinagdadaanan ko… Siyempre, hindi naman tayo palaging 100% na masaya sa training or enjoy mo yung training. Plus, yung mga mistakes ko during competition and training, doon ko ina-assess yung sarili ko. Sa mga hardship talaga siya nakukuha.”
For Yulo, though, he finds it easier to concentrate when confronted with adversity. A calm or cheerful state of mind sometimes makes it more difficult for him to focus on what he needs to do.
“Actually, mahirap siyang makuha pag masaya ka or pag magaan yung pakiramdam mo,” he explains. “Nakukuha ko siya palagi, yung mental toughness, talaga pag hirap na hirap ka. Hindi mo na kaya pero pipilitin mo. Ayaw mong gumalaw pero pipilitin mo talaga. Makipag-war ka talaga sa sarili mo. Doon ko siya mas na-appreciate and mas natututunan.”
Of course, Carlos also knows when to dial down the intensity or simply take a break when the situation calls for it.
“Balance din. May times na hindi puedeng palaging ganun. May times na kailangan ko kumalma din kasi depende din sa body. Pag pagod na pagod ka and pag mas pinilit mo kasi baka mag-lead lang sa injuries. Pero before yun mangyari, ita-try ko muna yung best ko talaga kung ano yung kaya ko that day or that time.
“Kapag di talaga okay, like kailangan ko siyang mas strategically na hindi puro laban ng laban. Siyempre kailangan ko rin respetuhin din yung katawan ko and kung ano lang yung kaya ng mind ko that time.”
Perhaps more than other sports, gymnastics requires a high degree of mental fortitude. Mind and body must be in sync at all times. To do this, all negative thoughts, anything that has the potential to mess with your head, must be banished.
For Carlos Yulo, being a celebrity athlete oftentimes exposes him to tons of negativity, so a cleansing ritual is a daily, or in his case nightly, process. Before going to bed, he plays music that gives out positive energy until he falls asleep “just to like cleanse yung mga negative na naisip ko or mga nakuha ko sa mga ibang tao na hindi magandang energy.”
Come competition time, he shifts his focus to breathing exercises and tries not to think about what he will perform. But it’s a delicate balancing act. Too little mental preparation, and it’s difficult to overcome your physical challenges. Too little physical preparation and your mind shuts down.
“Basta mataas yung mental mo, kahit gaano pa ka-weak yung body mo, ma-overcome niya yung hirap. Pero para sa akin kasi, without proper muscle or conditioning, hindi din gumagana yung utak ko. So para sa akin pantay lang dapat.”
Elevating Philippine gymnastics
Carlos Yulo will go to Paris with the hopes of a nation on his shoulders. While he’s not the only Filipino athlete expected to medal — the boxers and EJ Obiena are also right up there — there is something about his countenance and demeanor that gives him a broader appeal, a “rootability” if there ever was a word to describe how you somehow are drawn to a team or athlete.
But regardless of what happens in Paris, Yulo has already taken Philippine gymnastics to greater heights. The kid who had to elude security guards just to get into a gym is now, whether he admits it or not, a role model for the Filipino youth.
“Hindi ko din masasabi,” he said when asked if he considered himself as such. “Hindi ko alam sa sarili ko. Pero aware naman din ako na maraming mga kabataan na naglo-look up sa akin. Ako kasi, ginagawa ko lang din kung ano yung yung gusto ko sa buhay, yung pinapangarap ko.
“Hindi ko na din namalayan na yung mga kabataan na pala yung like, ina-idolize ka or yung nilo-look up ka nila. Siguro ang advice ko lang sa kanila na gawin nila kung ano talaga yung gusto nila, yung purpose nila sa mundo.”
Much has changed since Yulo and his friends began training in earnest at the Rizal Sports Complex. Under the leadership of Cynthia Carrion, the GAP now has its own building and training center in Intramuros. Thanks in part to Carlos’ exploits, more Filipino gymnasts have qualified for the Olympics, including the first females in Levi Ruivivar, Emma Malabuyo, and Aleah Finnegan. This four-person gymnastics delegation is also the largest since Mexico ’68.
At the same time, there is still so much more that can be done. A quick glance at that lineup will show that Carlos is the only male gymnast, a situation he wishes to change. He wants young boys out there to know that they, too, can be gymnasts.
“Ang gymnastics ay hindi lang para sa mga babae na sport. Hindi siya yung humahawak ng ribbon lang. Hindi siya yung may tugtog sa lahat ng apparatus. Hindi rin siya ballet pero artistic. Iyon pinaka siguro na maging image ng lahat sana.
“Sana mas lumaki pa, mas maging sikat siguro yung larangan ng gymnastics. Gusto ko maraming bata yung mag-try ng gymnastics, kahit try lang, kahit hindi nila gawing professional. Parang para sa akin, masaya ako na makita na maraming gustong sumubok sa gymnastics.”
Of course, the best way to convince more youngsters to follow in his footsteps is for him and the others to actually win a medal or two in Paris. Carlos firmly believes this will happen.
“Malaki naman talaga yung chance natin maka-medal, especially sa floor, vault and parallel bars,” he said. “Also sa individual all-around din, may chance naman na din. Yun lang, siguro mas mag-focus talaga ako sa execution ko, and sa magandang landings talaga yung kailangan ko ipakita and i-practice talaga bago mag-Olympics.”
Carlos Yulo has prepared for this moment of redemption for the past three years. Now, he just needs to execute it flawlessly.
Text SID VENTURA
Photography KIERAN PUNAY of KLIQ, Inc.
Creative Direction MARC YELLOW and CAS ASEOCHE
Hair and Grooming TWINKLE BERNARDINO and ANGELI ALFONSO
Sittings Editor ANNIKA CANIZA
Shoot Coordination ANTHONY MENDOZA
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