Carlos Yulo Wins Philippines’ First Gold At The 2026 Asian Games
Carlos Edriel Yulo delivered the Philippines’ first gold medal of the 2026 Asian Games on Thursday, September 24, ruling the men’s floor exercise final at the Nagoya City General Gymnasium in Japan. The two-time Olympic gold medalist scored 14.666, built on 8.966 for execution and 5.7 for difficulty, to top the eight-man field that also included his younger brother, Eldrew.
Fourth In Line, First To Finish
Yulo competed fourth in the rotation. The Philippines had not yet won gold at the Aichi-Nagoya Games, and Yulo had never won an Asiad gold before this run. He set the mark early and nobody caught him. Kazakhstan’s Milad Karimi, performing last, came closest with 14.600, just 0.066 behind. Japan’s Shoma Tsukiyama took bronze with 14.566.
The One Title He Was Missing
Yulo entered the Games already holding Olympic, World Championships, Asian Championships, and Southeast Asian Games titles. Asian Games gold was the one piece missing from that collection. Nagoya finally gave it to him.
Yulo said, “it’s all complete now.” He also said the final carried the same weight as the Olympics for him.
Brothers On The Same Mat
Eldrew Yulo also reached the final, his first Asian Games appearance, and finished seventh of eight with a 12.233. Two brothers, one final, the same mat.
Two Apparatus Still To Go
Yulo’s week in Nagoya isn’t finished. He still has the vault and parallel bars finals ahead, both events where he’s a known threat.
The gold also comes days after a rougher result for the team. The Philippine men’s squad finished sixth in the team event on Wednesday, scoring 227.359 points, well behind China’s winning total of 255.095. Yulo turned it around fast, landing his best event just one day later.
