IN a development that augurs well for the sport next year, the Philippines, led by national team veterans Juancho Miguel Besana and Justine Ace de Leon and junior ace Karl EldrewYulo, dominated the Hong Kong Artistic Gymnastics Open & Novice Championships in Hong Kong over the weekend.
The Filipino gymnasts carted away 14 gold, six silver and three bronze medals in the men’s senior and junior artistic gymnastics competitions of the tourney also known as the Chiu Wai Chung Cup.
Cambodia Southeast Asian Games men’s vault gold medalist Juancho Miguel Besana stood out, romping off with mints in the prestigious men’s all-around event, floor exercise and pommel horse on top of silvers in the floor exercise, pommel horse and rings events.
De Leon shared the spotlight with his national teammate, ruling the rings and parallel bars plus a vault bronze while Jhon Matthew Vergara, Jhon Romeo Santillan and John Gwynn Timbang had a silver each in the horizontal bar, floor exercise and pommel horse, respectively.
Thanks to their sterling showing, the Pinoy bets also captured the overall senior men’s team championship in the stint organized by the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines and supported by the Philippine Sports Commission.
Karl, 16, the younger sibling of celebrated Paris Olympics double gold medalist Carlos EdrielYulo, stamped his class in the juniors’ division, romping off with six individual golds while anchoring the national squad to the team crown.
With octopus-like proficiency, Yulo, fresh from training with famed Japanese coach MunehiroKugimiya in Tokyo, Japan, took the individual all-around, floor exercise, vault, parallel bars, horizontal bar, rings and pommel horse.
Also sharing the spotlight in the junior meet was HilarionPalles III, who bagged a bronze each in the parallel bars and pommel horse, respectively.
Handling the team were national men’s artistic gymnastics head coach ReylandCapellan and assistant coach Aldrin Castaneda.
