Eldrew Yulo leads Team Philippines in World Junior Gymfest

MANILA, November 20 ------ Eldrew Yulo, the brother of double Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo, will take the spotlight as the 3rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics Junior World Championships commences at the Manila Marriott Hotel Grand Ballroom within the Newport World Resorts in Pasay City.

Yulo, who came home after months of training from Japan under the tutelage of renowned coach Munehiro Kugimiya, will be leading the charge for the home bets, and will be joined by his counterpart in the women's division, Elizabeth Antone. "He's been working so hard to win medals," said Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP) president Cynthia Carrion during the opening press conference for the Junior World Gymfest.

Yulo is expected to take the stage at 6 p.m. at the men's artistic gymnastics qualifications and team rankings on Thursday. For the women's side, the qualifications will take place Friday; the MAG and WAG all-around finals will be on Saturday, while the finals for the apparatuses for both genders will be on Sunday and Monday.

Carrion previously said that Eldrew, coming from a silver medal-clinching performance in vault at the Asian Junior Championships in Jecheon, South Korea last July, could clinch golds in floor exercise, parallel bars, rings and vault. However, Carrion asserted that she'd already be satisfied if the younger Yulo snags two golds—which the young gymnast assured the GAP chief that he can do. "He assured me he can do it. I feel he can give us one medal, or maybe even two medals. I'm happy with two [medals]," said Carrion in the same presser.

As the Junior Gymfest kicks off, Carrion asked the Filipino public to support gymnastics—the sport which gave the Philippines its second and third gold medals in the Olympics. "Cheer for our athletes, cheer for everybody and let's have fun and let's show to the world that gymnastics is a very, very important sport," said Carrion. Seventy-five nations will be vying for gymnastics glory, right here on Philippine soil from November 20-24.

Source: news.abs-cbn.com