World champion Carlos Yulo will head into action immediately after the Tokyo 2020 Olympics opening ceremonies as he will participate in the men’s artistic gymnastics tournament’s qualifying round on Saturday, July 24, at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre.

Yulo was drawn into mixed group 5 with Turkey and Italy, where they will compete in subdivision 3 that will be held from 6:30 pm to 9 pm, Philippine time.

The 21-year-old must place in the top 8 of an apparatus in order to advance to an event final, where only a maximum of two gymnasts per country can participate.

To qualify for the individual all-around final, he must place within the top 24 overall.

Yulo, who bagged the 2019 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships men’s floor exercises gold, will be vying for all seven gold medals at stake.

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics all-around final will be held on Wednesday, July 28, while Yulo’s pet floor exercises event will be staged on Sunday, August 1, followed by the vault on Monday, August 2.

In the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, the Philippines’ first world gymnastics champion ruled the men’s all-around event and floor exercises event, then settled for runner-up finishes in the vault, still rings, pommel horse, parallel bars, and horizontal bar. 

Yulo has been training in Tokyo, Japan with coach Munehiro Kugimiya and recently bagged a bronze in the 2021 All Japan Apparatus Championships last June 8. – Rappler.com

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