MANILA - With an eye to making a second trip to the Olympic Games, top gymnast Carlos Edriel Yulo drew lessons from his experience in international play this year, among them not to overthink as much during his actual performances.

“My mindset is not to overthink a lot like we did but to take things as they come, although it is sometimes difficult,” said Yulo last week when he was cited as the “MVP” during an awards dinner organized by the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines with KG Management at the Heritage Hotel ballroom in Pasay City.

“I will try to take my time in my succeeding competitions,” said the Filipino pocket dynamo, who capped his international season with a silver and bronze medal in the men’s vault and parallel bars, respectively, in the 51st FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Liverpool, England last November.

• Yulo clinches vault silver, parallel bars bronze at gymnastics world championships
• Caloy Yulo finishes 8th in all-around final at gymnastics world championships

In another milestone, Yulo also wound up in the top eight overall in the difficult men’s all-around event in world competition held in the hometown of the famous English band the Beatles.

He said that being drawn in the main subdivision with the other elite gymnasts for the first time in his fourth outing in the event added pressure to his performance, “but I learned a lot from it and will apply them in future competitions.”

• How Caloy Yulo assessed his first pre-world championships workout

Also cited during the GAP gala event, Japanese coach Munehiro Kugimiya, the national men’s team mentor, said that his prized charge must first finish in the top eight of the men’s all-around event of the Asian championships to make the cut to the next edition of the world meet.

The 52nd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships is slated Sept. 29 to Oct. 8, 2023 in Antwerp, Belgium and will be a major Olympic qualifying competition for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, according to Kugimiya.

Yulo bagged a silver medal in the men’s all-around event in the last Asian championships held in Doha, Qatar in fruitful outing that also netted him golds in the men’s vault, floor exercise and parallel bars.

“Pero sa susunod na Asian po, gusto ko pong makuha din yun gold sa all-around. Kungdi ako nagkamali sa high bar, gold na rin po yun. Sobrang lapit na I nearly cried. (But in the next Asian meet, I am aiming for the gold. I nearly got it if not for a slight mistake on the high bar. It was so close, I nearly cried),” he recalled.

As part of Yulo’s build-up to the worlds, Kugimiya disclosed that the pint-sized athlete is scheduled to compete in the International Gymnastics Federation, the world gymnastics body known by its French acronym FIG, World Cup Series early next year.

The first leg will be held from Feb. 23 to 26 in Cottbus, Germany. The next stop will be from March 1 to 4 in Doha, Qatar, to be followed on March 9 to 12 in Baku, Azerbaijan, before winding up with the fourth and last leg from April 27 to 30 in Cairo, Egypt.

The Japanese mentor said that Yulo will also see action in the 32nd Cambodia Southeast Asian Games slated May 5 to 16.

Ultimately, the two-time world champion said that his dream is making it back to the Olympics and finally securing a gold medal in the 2024 Paris Summer Games after his Olympic debut in Tokyo last year fell short of expectations.

Fresh from his triumphant stint in the 2019 edition in Stuttgart, Germany where he bagged the men’s floor exercise mint, Yulo flopped in forte after a bad slip that resulted in early exit in the qualifying round.

Since then, he acknowledged his single-minded focus on redeeming himself and going all out for gold once he makes it to the Paris Summer Games.

During the awards dinner, the gymnast, who has been a protégé of the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines since he was eight years old, paid tribute to GAP president Cynthia Carrion for her support throughout the years.

“We would not have had accomplished much and would not be here today without the sacrifice and effort from Ma’am Cynthia. We value all your sacrifices that enable us to go this far and the lessons you have taught us. Thank you for investing in me and my training,” Yulo said.

He also had kinds works for Kugimiya, saying: “Thank you for being like a second father to me, for always guiding and protecting my interests.”

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