Palarong Pambansa: Carlos Yulo's bro Karl Eldrew puts on a show

MANILA, Philippines — In the Palarong Pambansa men’s artistic gymnastics competition at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum, all 90 participants aspire to be like world champion Carlos Edriel Yulo.

It included one who happens to be Yulo’s 15-year-old brother, Karl Eldrew.

And the younger Yulo showed he has what it takes to become like his popular sibling as he was heavily favored to make the finals of all five events he is joining and possibly six if his National Capital Region team of three gymnasts would qualify.

Yulo was especially impressive in the floor exercise, where he came through with an electric performance that many believed should catapult him straight to Friday’s medal round.

Karl Eldrew Yulo of the NCR just blew away the Palarong Pambansa competition and should win the gold. Electric performance. Summoning his elder brother Carlos Yulo’s magnificence! The finals is on Aug. 4. @PhilippineStar pic.twitter.com/CQjh1rgvF5

— Joey Villar (@JoeySVillar) August 2, 2023

While organizers didn’t give out the official results at press time, it was clear that Yulo’s performance was the best as affirmed by the loud cheers and applause from the hundreds who trooped the venue on this particularly rainy day.

Everyone knew he would win the moment Yulo stepped on the mat.

“Hopefully, makapasok sa lahat,” said Yulo after he was hugged by his mother Angelika following his breathtaking routine.

Yulo, of course, was hoping to surpass his five-gold haul in the last staging of the annual meet for elementary and high school students in Davao City four years ago.

And most, if not all, believed Yulo would.

“The most gold that he could win, assuming pumasok sa lahat ng finals, is six,” said Yulo’s coach Reyland Capellan.

Yulo’s brilliance came the same day four swimming records fell at the Marikina Sports Complex pool, including one by the Big City’s Krystal Ava David in the elementary girls’ 200-meter individual medley where she clocked two minutes and 37.32 seconds.

The 12-year-old Colegio de San Agustin student shattered the five-year-old meet mark of 2:33.12 set by NCR’s Michaela Jasmine Mojdeh in Vigan, Ilocos Sur — her second record-breaker after she rearranged the 100m breaststroke standard the day before.

Also joining the record-eclipsing spree were Albert Jose Amaro of Bicol in the secondary boys 50m butterfly, Clara Yzabela delos Santos of NCR in the secondary girls 50m breaststroke, and the NCR secondary girls 200m freestyle relay team of Cezar Nazerano, Victoriano Martin Tirol, Jared Magnus Cheng and Arbeen Miguel Thruelen.

In Poomsae, the Cordillera Administrative Region went on a gold-harvesting mode and scooped up six mints courtesy of Trisha Lobonan (elementary girls individual), Alexandria Daphne Aganon and Jheron Cristobal (elementary mixed pair) and Lobonan, Aganon and Joniyaua Ysabelle Oblacoro (elementary girls team), Caleb Angelo Calde, Zeick Andrei Tacay and Gabriel Ivan Inacay (secondary boys team), Inacay and Aesha Kiara Oglayon (secondary mixed pair) and Oglayon and her sister Acey Kiana and Khia Mae Cortez (secondary girls team).